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A.  Piste,  1822. 

Pestalozzi. 

Ffom  a  miniature  given  to  Rev.  C,  Mayo,  D.D„  and  now  in  the  possession  0/  Miss  Mayo.. 


PESTALOZZI 

AN   ACCOUNT   OF    HIS    LIFE   AND    WORK 


H?*' HOLM  AN 


M.A.   (cANTAB),   formerly  PROFESSOR    OF   EDUCATION   IN   TH] 
UNIVERSITY     COLLEGE     OF     WALES,     ABERYSTWYTH 

Author  of  "  An  Introduction  to  Education," 

"English   National  Education," 

"Oberlin,"  etc. 


WITH  FOUR  ILLUSTRATIONS 
AND  DIAGRAMS  IN   THE    TEXT 


LONGMANS,     GREEN,     AND     CO. 

39  PATERNOSTER  ROW,  LONDON 

NEW  YORK,  BOMBAY  AND  CALCUTTA 

1908 

[All  rights  reserved] 


PREFACE. 

*'  Oh,  how  true  it  is  that  the  teacher  without  psycho- 
logy does  his  work  as  badly  as  an  old  woman  doctoring." 
Thus  wrote  Steinmiiller  in  1799,  in  relation  to  Pesta- 
lozzi's  ideas.  Pestalozzi  said :  "  I  want  to  psychologise 
instruction  ".  There  is  still  some  room  for  a  modern 
Pestalozzi.  Meantime  much  may  be  gained  by  a  study 
of  Pestalozzi's  attempts  to  psychologise  education.  A 
study  of  origins  is,  to  a  student  sufficiently  well  prepared, 
a  great  aid  to  the  fullest  grasp  of  pure  theory ;  for 
abstract  science,  so  far  as  it  is  true,  must  proceed  from 
and  return  to  its  simplest  forms.  To  say  the  least  of  it, 
he  is  very  much  to  be  envied  or  pitied  who  cannot  still 
learn  something  from  Pestalozzi. 

The  aim  of  the  present  account  of  the  life  and  work 
of  Pestalozzi  is  to  provide  students,  and  teachers  who 
still  study,  with  the  material  for  a  thoughtful  survey  of 
the  principles  and  practices  of  one  of  the  greatest  of  the 
world's  pioneer  educators  and  educationists.  Every  effort 
has  been  made  to  set  forth  as  clearly  as  possible  what 
Pestalozzi  thought,  wrote,  and  did,  and  not  to  expound 


IV  PREFACE. 

what  the  writer  of  this  book  thinks  of  what  Pestalozzi 
thought,  and  wrote,  and  did.  Of  course  this  does  not 
mean  that  no  opinions  are  given;  but  great  care  has 
been  taken  to  restrict  these  as  much  as  possible.  The 
greatest  success  of  this  volume  will  be  that  it  gives  the 
fullest  opportunity,  and  greatest  stimulus,  to  the  readers 
to  do  their  own  thinking  and  formulate  their  own  con- 
clusions. 

To  this  end  very  full  and  frequent  quotations  are 
made  both  from  translations  of  Pestalozzi's  works,  and 
from  the  writings  of  those  who  knew  him  best;  and  were 
most  competent  to  criticise,  favourably  and  unfavourably, 
his  work.  Whilst  this  should  be  helpful  as  an  easy 
introduction  to  a  general  view  of  the  man  and  his  work, 
it  is  hoped  that  it  will  also  lead  the  reader  to  the  original 
sources,  or  their  translations.  Those  who  have  not 
thus  gone  to  the  original  sources  will  be  surprised  to 
find  how  easily  and  quickly  they  can  read  through 
books  for  the  reading  of  which  the  mind  has  already 
been  well  prepared. 

This  is  to  cultivate  the  true  student  method.  Nothing 
is  so  mentally  degrading  as  to  regard  a  book  as  an 
examination  task,  and  to  be  grateful  to  the  writer  in 
proportion  as  he  has  done  all  the  thinking,  and,  so  to 
say,  tied  up  the  results  in  well-arranged  and  plainly 
labelled  parcels,  so  that  they  may  be  easily  stored 
amongst  the  memory  cargo,  and  readily  unpacked  when 
required.      To  aim   at  examination    success    only,    or 


PREFACE.  V 

mainly,  is  the  most  certain  way  of  killing  intellectual 
growth  and  development. 

The  educational  function  of  a  writer  is  to  do  for  the 
readers  what  the  wise  teacher  does  for  his  pupils,  i.e., 
give  them  the  best  materials,  conditions  and  oppor- 
tunities for  self-activity  and  self-development.  If  this 
be  done,  the  attitude  and  the  aptitudes  of  the  research 
student  will  be  fostered,  and  a  scientific  grasp  result 
from  a  scientific  method.  In  this  way  intelligent 
readers  should  obtain  from  a  book  with  such  a  topic  as 
this  one,  some  idea  of  the  evolution  of  educational 
systems;  of  the  genetic  theory  of  thought  itself;  and 
some  sense  of  historical  perspective — which  will  teach  a 
proper  modesty  in  estimating  the  progress  of  our  own 
times.  To  realise  how  much  of  the  present  consists  of 
the  past,  and  how  much  more  of  truth  and  strength 
than  of  error  and  weakness  there  was  in  the  great  men 
of  old,  will  reveal  to  us  unexpected  treasures  of  know- 
ledge and  inspiration. 

So  far  as  the  present  writer  has,  by  selection,  given  a 
particular  tone  and  colouring  to  his  view  of  his  hero,  he 
has  deliberately  chosen  to  make  it  as  appreciative  as 
possible.  He  has  sought  to  include  everything  con- 
cerning the  man  which,  he  believes,  has  done,  and  will 
do,  good  to  the  world  at  large ;  and  rigorously  to  ex- 
clude all  that  is  foreign  to  this  purpose.  He  holds  the 
view  that  all  that  is  good  should  live  after  a  man,  and  all 
that  is  not  so  should  be  decently  buried  with  his  bones 


VI  PREFACE. 

— except  in  so  far  as  the  pathologist  of  men  and  man- 
ners can  make  a  proper  and  profitable  use  of  it.  In 
particular  it  is  the  educational  good  which  it  is  desired 
to  propound  and  perpetuate.  Pestalozzi  was,  educa- 
tionally, one  of  the  world's  greatest  benefactors. 

My  special  thanks  are  due  to  Miss  Mayo,  of  River- 
dale,  Dorking,  for  her  generous  and  valuable  help  in 
allowing  me  to  make  use  of  Dr.  Mayo's  literary  re- 
mains ;  and  for  having  copies  made  of  the  original 
pictures  of  which  reproductions  are  given  in  this  book. 
I  am  also  indebted  to  Rev.  Canon  C.  H.  Mayo,  of 
Long  Burton  Vicarage,  Sherborne,  for  information 
gleaned  from  his  Genealogical  Account  of  the  Mayo  and 
Elton  Families. 

H.  HOLMAN. 

Leeds,  T.jth  jfuly,  1908. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER 


PAGE 


Preface iii 

I.  The  Spirit  of  the  Times i 

II.  Early  Years  and  Education ig 

III.  He  Begins  His  Life-work 32 

IV.  Pestalozzi  as  a  Literary  Man 50 

V.  Pestalozzi  at  Stanz  and  Burgdorf  .        ,        .        .71 

VI.  Pestalozzi  at  Yverdon gi- 

VII.  The  Death-song 113 

VIIL  Pestalozzi  the  Man 120 

IX.  Pestalozzi  the  Thinker     .......  142 

X.  Pestalozzi  the  Thinker  (continued) 167 

XI.  Pestalozzi's   Methods    of    Teaching    Language,    Form 

and  Number ig7 

XII.  Pestalozzi's    Methods    of    Teaching    Various    Other 

Subjects 230 

XIII.  Pestalozzi's  General  Methods  and  Views     .         ,        .  256 

XIV.  Pestalozzi  as  a  Practical  Teacher         ....  283 
XV.  Some  Criticisms  on  Pestalozzi's  Theories     .        ,        .  291 

XVI.  What  Pestalozzi  did  for  Education        ....  307 

Some    Books   for    Reference,    and    Suggestions   for 

Further  Reading 3ig 

Index ,        ,        ,        ,        .  321 

vii 


LIST   OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Pestalozzi Frontispiece 

From  a  miniature  given  to  Rev,  C,  Mayo,  D.D.,  and  now  in 
the  possession  of  Miss  Mayo. 


FACING   PAGE 

View  of  Yverdon  .        .      ' 91 

From  a  sketch  in  the  possession  of  Miss  Mayo. 


Pestalozzi  at  Yverdon.  An  allegorical  picture ;  Pestalozzi  is  in 
his  room  at  the  Castle,  yet  the  Castle  is  in  the  scene  through 
the  window 256 

From  a  transparency  in  the  possession  of  Miss  Mayo. 


Part  of  a  Letter  written  by  Pestalozzi.      The   sketch   of 

THE  Castle  (Yverdon)  is  by  Dr.  Mayo        ....    314 

From  MS.  in  the  possession  of  Miss  Mayo. 


VUi 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  TIMES. 

Given  a  certain  native  genius  of  mind  and  character, 
it  is  true  of  most  of  the  world's  great  men  that  they  are 
as  much  the  product  of  their  own  and  previous  times  as 
they  are  the  reformers  of  their  own  age,  and  the  formers 
of  some  of  the  elements  of  all  subsequent  ages.  It  is, 
therefore,  necessary  to  know  something  of  the  spirit  of 
the  times  in  which  a  man  lived  if  we  are  to  know,  fully 
and  truly,  what  he  was  and  what  he  did.  It  has  been 
well  said  that  a  proverb  is  the  wisdom  of  all  ages  wit- 
tily expressed — world  wisdom  crystallised  by  individual 
wit.  In  much  the  same  way  it  is  true  to  say  that  the 
wisdom  and  work  of  the  world's  heroes  represent  the 
wisdom  and  work  of  all  men  articulated  and  universal- 
ised  by  a  great  master-man.  Not  every  one,  however,  can 
make  proverbs,  nor  can  every  one  discover  and  reveal 
foundation  principles.  It  needs  at  least  a  flash  of  genius 
for  the  one  and  a  man  of  genius  for  the  other.  We  can 
get  only  as  we  give  ;  and  he  who  sees  the  world's  secrets 
is  he-  who  has  the  large  vision  and  the  great  soul.  All 
are  called  but  few  are  chosen  :  all  come  under  the  in- 
fluences, but  only  the  finely  tempered  mind  and  man  is 
in  "  sympathetic  vibration  "  with  them.  From  him  rings 
out  the  new  note  of  revelation  ;  and  happy  is  the  world 
if  it  hearkens  thereto. 

I 


2  PESTALOZZI. 

The  master-mind  is  not  the  only  star  in  a  particular 
intellectual  firmament,  but  it  is  at  least  one  of  the  suns 
therein.  The  real  founder  of  theories  and  institutions 
is  not  necessarily  the  first  or  the  only  one  who  has 
thought  and  acted  in  such  matters,  but  he  who  gathers 
up  and  puts  into  clear  and  potent  form  great  truths  : 
he  who  universalises  what  has  hitherto  been  individual 
and  special :  he  who  gives  to  all  what  would  otherwise 
have  been  only  for  the  few  :  he  who  completes,  in  the 
large  sense,  what  others  only  began.  The  great  man 
can  no  more  exist  without  the  help  of  smaller  men,  than 
smaller  men  can  become  greater  without  the  help  of 
the  great  man.  How  much  each  owes  to  the  other  it 
is  useless  to  discuss  and  impossible  to  determine :  we 
might  as  well  ask  whether  the  product  ah  is  the  more 
indebted  to  the  factor  a  or  h.  It  is  sufficient  to  re- 
member that  neither  can  do  without  the  other,  nor  can 
either  do  the  work  of  the  other. 

In  trying  to  set  forth  the  relations  of  Pestalozzi  and 
his  work  to  the  spirit  of  the  age  in  which  he  lived,  we 
shall  take  it  as  true  that  every  great  popular  movement 
in  favour  of  educational  progress  has  been  chiefly  based 
on  political  and  social  grounds.  It  has  ever  been  the 
general  aim  to  consider  how  to  make  a  man  a  good 
citizen  rather  than  a  good  man  ;  though,  of  course,  the 
latter  effect  could  never  be  wholly  ignored,  and  has 
always  been  most  clearly  recognised  by  the  clearest 
thinkers  and  the  best  intentioned  workers.  Neverthe- 
less, one  is  inclined  to  say  that,  as  a  rule,  educational 
progress  has  been  the  result  of  the  slow  growth  of  a 
conviction  that  it  pays  better  to  have  men  rather  than 
beasts  of  burden  as  citizens.  The  movement  towards 
the  social  and  intdlectual  emancipation  of  *'  the  lower 


EDUCATION    IS   PRIMARILY  A  SOCIAL   MOVEMENT.      3 

orders  "  has  always  received  its  most  powerful  stimulus 
'from  the  efforts  of  the  great  thinkers  and  philanthropists 
of  their  times,  and  from  the  consequences  of  the  in- 
tolerable sufferings  and  oppressions  heaped  upon  the 
victims  of  ignorance  and  greed,  i.e.^  "  the  lower  orders  " — 
which  they  in  fact  were,  thanks  to  the  treatment  they 
received. 

It  is  a  happy  dispensation  that  in  the  nature  of  things 
the  struggles — in  their  own  interests  only,  in  the  first 
instance — for  progress  of  those  at  the  top  of  the  social 
scale  inevitably  bring,  in  the  long  run,  great  good  to 
those  at  the  bottom.  The  growth  of  political  power 
(in  modern  times),  and  with  it  the  increase  of  educa- 
tional and  social  advantages,  has  been  downwards  from 
kings  to  the  aristocracy ;  the  aristocracy  to  the  middle 
classes  ;  middle  classes  to  the  democracy.  During  the 
life  of  Pestalozzi  one  of  the  greatest  political  and  social 
revolutions  in  European  history  reached  its  climax. 
Professor  H.  Morse  Stephens  writing  on  the  period 
1789-1815  entitles  his  book  Revolutionary  Europe.  This 
revolution  was  really  the  outcome  of  an  intellectual 
revolution. 

With  the  revival  of  learning  (1453) — the  Renaissance 
— there  had  come  what  may  be  called  the  democracy  of 
ideas.  Learning  was  no  longer  the  monopoly  of  a  class, 
but  was  open  to  all  who  had  sufficient  ability,  leisure 
and  means.  And  there  was  such  a  high  and  noble 
enthusiasm  for  "  knowledge  for  its  own  sake  "  that  we 
find  the  more  generous  souls  desired  that  all,  even  the 
poorest,  should  partake  of  it.  Erasmus  (1467-1536) 
wished  that  the  Scriptures  should  ^be  translated  into 
every  language  and  given  to  all :  "  I  wish  that  the  weak- 
est woman  might  read  the  Gospels  and   the  Epistles 


4  PESTALOZZI. 

of  St.  Paul.  ...  I  long  for  the  day  when  the  husband- 
man shall  sing  portions  of  them  to  himself  as  he 
follows  the  plough,  when  the  weaver  shall  hum  them 
to  the  tune  of  his  shuttle,  when  the  traveller  shall 
while  away  with  their  stories  the  weariness  of  his 
journey." 

The  printing  press  (1438) — the  very  deus  ex  machina 
of  intellectual  democracy — soon  did  for  knowledge  what 
steam  has  done  for  trade :  reduced  time  and  distance 
to  their  lowest  terms  in  the  intellectual  commerce  of 
the  people.  Men  no  longer  had  to  make  long  and  weary 
pilgrimages  to  the  homes  of  learning:  knowledge  was 
brought  to  their  very  doors.  Often  with  less  trouble 
than  was  taken,  formerly,  to  teach  one  pupil  by  the 
voice,  a  teacher  now  taught  thousands  by  the  pen. 
Little  wonder  therefore  that  old  things  began  to  pass 
away  and  all  things  to  become  new.  In  the  cultiva- 
tion of  ideas  men  discovered  themselves,  so  to  say,  and 
were  no  longer  content  to  be  the  shadows  and  echoes 
of  the  few  in  high  places.  They  sought  first  to  deliver 
themselves  from  bondage  and  then  to  enter  into  posses- 
sion of  their  own.  This  movement,  which  in  the  religi- 
ous world  led  to  the  Reformation,  in  the  political  and 
social  world  led  to  the  advent  of  democratic  forms  of 
government,  and  the  spread  of  education. 

Hobbes  (1588-1679),  the  great  English  philosopher, 
may  be  said  to  have  started  the  political  revolution  from 
the  intellectual  standpoint.  He  had  endeavoured  to 
find  the  rational  bases  of  social  and  political  institutions 
in  Leviathan;  and,  in  so  doing,  had  founded  a  school 
of  thought  which  was  to  change  the  whole  order  of 
things  political  in  Europe.  The  central  idea  of  his 
political  theory  was  that   the   State  is  based  upon    a 


THE   PHILOSOPHERS  AS   REVOLUTIONISTS.  5 

voluntary  covenant  between  those  composing  it,  in 
which  they  give  up  more  or  less  of  their  individual 
rights  and  powers  in  order  to  gain  the  advantages  of 
collective  protection  and  progress.  They,  therefore, 
establish  a  supreme  authority ;  but  still  keep  the  power 
to  resume  their  natural  rights,  if  this  authority  fails  to 
secure  for  them  what  they  have  a  right  to  expect. 
Although  Hobbes  himself  entirely  believed  in,  and  up- 
held, the  monarchical  form  of  this  supreme  authority, 
other  great  thinkers,  such  as  Hooker,  Locke  and  Syd- 
ney, modified  and  expanded  the  principle — which  was 
known  as  that  of  Social  Contract.  Locke  (1632-1704) 
in  his  Treatise  07t  Civil  Government  developed  from  this 
principle  the  theory  of  constitutional  government,  based 
on  such  grounds  as  :  all  men  are  originally  free  and 
equal ;  all  should  assist  and  help  each  other ;  all  the 
goods  of  the  earth  are  common  to  all,  in  the  first 
instance ;  only  personal  labour  can  give  any  right  of 
"private  property,"  and  only  in  so  far  as  there  is 
*'  enough  and  as  good  left  in  common  for  others  ". 

The  principles  of  liberty  of  thought,  personal  free- 
dom and  individual  responsibility  were  becoming  the 
commonplaces  of  philosophy — and  even  philosophy  had 
become  democratised ;  for  just  as  the  great  religious 
reformers  insisted  that  the  Bible  should  be  translated 
into  the  speech  of  the  people,  so  philosophers  had  begun 
to  write  in  a  style  which  appealed  to  the  average  man. 
Such  great  thinkers  and  writers  as  Voltaire,  Montesquieu, 
Rousseau,  Spinoza,  Liebnitz,  Kant,  Hume  and  others, 
all  contributed,  by  their  writings,  to  the  intellectual 
revolution  in  Europe. 

All  this  led  to  the  ever-increasing  belief  that  it  was 
through  human  reason  that  the  Divine  Will    and   its 


6  PESTALOZZI. 

laws  were  expressed  ;  and,  therefore,  that  man  himself 
was  the  originator  and  founder  of  laws  and  institutions, 
and  was  their  master,  not  their  slave.  Whilst,  during 
the  greater  part  of  the  eighteenth  century,  it  was  held 
that  government  existed  for  the  security  and  prosperity 
of  the  governed,  yet  it  was  also  held  that  it  could  not 
be,  and  ought  not  to  be,  administered  by  the  people. 
But  this  latter  notion  was  being  denied ;  and  the  French 
Revolution  was  the  articulate  declaration  of  the  belief 
in  the  sovereignty  of  the  people,  i.e.,  government  of  the 
people,  for  the  people,  and  by  the  people.  It  must  be 
remembered  that,  throughout  the  century,  the  majority 
of  the  peasants  of  Europe  were,  in  effect,  absolute  serfs. 
They  were  compelled  to  give  so  much  time  to  working 
for  their  lords  that  they  had  to  cultivate  their  own  land 
by  moonlight.  They  were  not  allowed  to  leave  their 
villages,  or  marry,  without  their  lord's  consent ;  neither 
could  any  of  them  learn  a  trade  without  permission. 
They,  therefore,  were  as  the  driest  of  dry  tinder  to  the 
sparks  of  the  intellectual  revolution  which  fell  upon 
them. 

Speaking  of  the  political  theories  which  were  then 
"  in  the  air,"  Mr.  Lecky  writes  :  "  The  true  causes  of 
their  mighty  influence  are  to  be  found  in  the  conditioti 
of  society.  Formerly  they  had  been  advocated  with  a 
view  to  special  political  exigencies,  or  to  a  single  country, 
or  to  a  single  section  of  society.  For  the  first  time,  in 
the  eighteenth  century,  they  penetrated  to  the  masses  of 
the  people,  stirred  them  to  their  lowest  depths,  and 
produced  an  upheaving  that  was  scarcely  less  general 
than  that  of  the  Reformation  "  {Rationalism  in  Europe), 
Thus,  though  monarchs  had  never  done  so  much,  as 
during  this  period,  in  the  way   of  important  civil  re- 


THE  SWISS  REVOLUTION.  7 

forms,  or  been  more  earnest  and  zealous  in  promoting 
the  well-being  of  the  lower  classes  ;  yet  the'people  were 
determined  to  abide  by  their  own  mistakes  in  self-gov- 
ernment, rather  than  endure  their  present  disabilities 
and  the  dangers  and  risks  of  personal  government — 
however  benevolent. 

Such  was  what  may  be  called  the  social  and  political 
atmosphere  in  Europe,  in  general ;  whilst  in  Switzer- 
land, in  particular,  it  was  at  one  of  its  points  of  greatest 
intensity.  Though  there  were  far  more  freemen  than 
bondmen  amongst  the  peasants,  yet  they  were  obliged 
to  fight  for  their  rights  against  two  great  anti-popular 
influences  in  government,  viz.^  ''  Patriciates,"  and  Guild 
government  *'  by  divine  right  ".  During  the  latter  part 
of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  onwards,  in  certain  towns 
and  states  ''  it  tacitly  became  the  rule  that  appoint- 
ments to  positions  in  the  councils  should  be  held  for 
life,  or  even  hereditary ;  in  Lucerne,  for  instance,  the 
son  succeeded  the  father,  and  the  brother  the  brother. 
But  when  the  end  could  not  be  attained  lawfully,  unlawful 
means,  such  as  bribery,  were  brought  to  bear.  Thus 
the  burghers  separated  themselves  into  a  distinct  class, 
with  the  sole  and  hereditary  right  of  governing  the 
whole  state.  The  road  to  government  appointment  was 
totally  barred  to  all  who  were  not  by  birth  freemen  of 
the  city.  ...  A  purely  aristocratic  system  was  gradu- 
ally formed,  or  as  it  was  called  (after  a  like  system  of 
Rome)  a  '  Patriciate  '.  In  Fribourg,  for  instance,  it 
was  determined  in  1627  to  exclude  all  families  who  were 
not  at  that  time  within  the  pale  of  the  council  from 
holding  any  public  offices ;  a  '  secret  chamber '  of 
twenty-four  members  elected  the  great  and  small 
councils  and  all  government   officials,   and   completed 


8  PESTALOZZI. 

itself;  thus  the  poHtical  rights  were  limited  to  only 
seventy-one  families.  .  .  . 

**  From  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century  it  became  the 
rule  in  Zurich  and  Bern  to  consult  the  peasantry  and 
advise  w^ith  them  upon  all  important  acts  of  govern- 
ment, such  as  the  declaration  of  war,  the  conclusion 
of  peace,  alliances,  taxes,  etc.  During  the  course  of 
the  sixteenth  century,  however,  the  idea  gradually 
obtained  that  the  authorities  wielded  the  sword  of  pro- 
tection and  punishment  in  God's  name,  and  that  the 
divine  law  required  obedience  from  subjects  in  all 
cases  ...  so  [they]  tried  to  destroy  the  influence  of 
the  people,  more  especially  after  an  exclusive  ruling 
faction  had  arisen  within  the  cities  themselves  "  (Dr. 
Karl  Dandliker,  A  Short  History  of  Switzerland).  The 
result  of  this  was  that  there  were  constant  revolts  of 
the  peasants.  Such  risings,  being  of  small  bodies  in 
different  localities,  were  easily  put  down  and  the  ring- 
leaders severely  punished.  In  1653  the  peasants  made 
common  cause  with  one  another  and  rose  in  rebellion. 
This  was  known  as  the  Peasants'  War,  and  it  ended 
in  their  complete  overthrow. 

During  the  seventeenth  century  considerable  material 
progress  took  place.  "  Outwardly  considered,  the  aris- 
tocracy developed  an  appearance  of  no  inconsiderable 
prosperity,  especially  in  administration.  The  general 
conditions  and  necessities  of  the  time  led  to  many  useful 
institutions.  ...  In  Bern,  Zurich,  Zug,  Basel,  and  even 
in  Soleure,  Lucerne,  Stanz,  etc.,  public  almshouses,  hos- 
pitals, orphan  asylums,  improved  houses  of  correction, 
etc.,  were  established.  The  governments  of  Zurich, 
Bern,  Basel  and  Zug  made  more  extensive  provision 
than  formerly  for  scholastic  institutions,  scientific  col- 


THE   SWISS   REVOLUTION.  Q 

lections  and  libraries,  for  commerce  and  industry.  .  .  . 
The  authorities  of  the  various  states  vied  with  one 
another  in  their  efforts  to  further  the  material  welfare  of 
their  subjects,  in  'fatherly'  fashion;  to  support  them 
in  times  of  misfortune,  of  bad  harvests,  of  famine,  etc., 
and  to  check  beggary,  pauperism  and  such-like  by 
numerous  mandates.  Viewed  externally,  many  parts  of 
Switzerland  presented  a  more  cheering  appearance 
than  the  numerous  provinces  of  other  lands,  mostly 
depopulated  and  devastated  by  war.  .  .  . 

"  Once  more  for  every  ray  of  light  there  was  a  shadow  ; 
narrow-mindedness  and  bigotry  reigned  supreme,  in  a 
way  which  it  is  now  hardly  possible  to  conceive.  .  .  . 
Higher  schools  were,  indeed,  provided,  but  on  the  other 
hand  hardly  anything  was  done  towards  educating  the 
people.  The  teachers  in  the  popular  schools  were 
ignorant  artisans,  discharged  soldiers,  or  uneducated 
youths ;  the  education  consisted  merely  in  learning 
mechanically  by  rote,  and  without  understanding,  re- 
ligious matter  out  of  the  catechism  and  various  devotional 
books.  By  this  means  ignorance  was  systematically 
cultivated,  and  the  mind  of  the  people  was  stifled  rather 
than  awakened.  Intellectual  life  was  entirely  under  the 
control  of  the  authorities,  secular  and  religious ;  it  was 
feared  that  a  liberal  education  might  open  the  eyes  of 
the  people.  Writings  which  displeased  the  authorities, 
even  innocent  poems  and  popular  songs,  were  unhesi- 
tatingly suppressed  ;  everything  had  to  undergo  the 
censorship  of  severe  masters  "  (Dr.  K.  Dandliker). 

With  the  increased  opportunities  for  the  education  of 
the  middle  classes  came  that  progress  in  ideas  which 
invariably  precedes  all  great  popular  movements. 
Albrecht  von   Haller  roused  patriotic  discontent  with 


10  PESTALOZZI. 

existing  conditions,  and  a  longing  for  better  things, 
with  his  poems  The  Alps,  The  Man  of  the  World,  and 
Demoralisation.  Young  J.  C.  Lavater,  of  Zurich,  com- 
posed his  Swiss  Songs,  in  which  he  calls  for  unity  in 
the  cause  of  national  well-being.  The  songs  soon  be- 
came the  "  songs  of  the  people,"  being  sung  by  men 
and  women,  old  and  young,  throughout  the  country. 
Salomon  Gessner,  of  Zurich,  wrote  Idylls,  which  were 
very  popular ;  and  in  which  he  sang  the  joys  of  coun- 
try life.  Franz  Urs  Balthasar,  of  Lucerne,  published 
(1758)  a  work  called  The  Patriotic  Dreams  of  a  Confederate 
of  a  way  to  make  young  again  the  old  Confederation,  in 
which  he  urges  the  founding  of  a  national  Swiss  insti- 
tute, in  which  the  children  of  the  aristocrats  should  be 
educated  in  such  a  way  that  they  would  become  good 
citizens  and  capable  politicians.  Amongst  other  subjects, 
history,  politics  and  military  science  were  to  be  taught. 
Professor  Bodmer,  of  Zurich,  aroused  an  interest  in 
literature,  amongst  scholars  and  readers,  by  his  publica- 
tions and  controversies  with  German  writers.  Societies 
for  artists,  musicians,  naturalists,  farmers,  etc. ;  benefit 
societies ;  reading  clubs,  etc.,  were  formed.  Printing 
presses  became  common  and  many  books,  magazines, 
newspapers  and  pamphlets  were  published.  Johann 
von  Miiller,  of  Schaffhausen,  pubHshed  (1780)  the  first 
popular  history  of  the  Swiss.  The  country  was  a 
meeting  place  for  many  of  the  great  men  of  the  day. 
Voltaire,  Ferney  and  Gibbon  spent  much  time  to- 
gether at  Lausanne  ;  whilst  Klopstock,  Wieland,  Kleist, 
Goethe,  Fichte  and  other  great  German  writers 
often  stayed  at  Zurich.  No  wonder  that  to  people 
suffering  so  much  political  and  social  oppression  and 
repression,   and  yet  just  beginning  to   enter  into   in- 


ROUSSEAU'S  INFLUENCE.  11 

tellectual  liberty  and  life,  the  political  pamphlets  and 
books  (from  France  and  England)  which  preached  the 
sovereignty  of  the  people,  and  the  liberty  of  man,  met 
with  a  hearty  welcome.  Above  all,  that  famous  and 
epoch-making  work  by  Rousseau,  Contrat  Social  (pub- 
lished 1744),  had  a  profound  effect  upon  the  reformers. 
With  all  its  glowing  eloquence ;  its  human  sympathy ; 
its  clear-cut  and  apparently  conclusive  arguments ;  its 
dogmatic  definiteness ;  and,  first  and  foremost,  its  fit- 
ness as  argument — however  specious  and  superficial 
even  as  special  pleading — for  their  purpose  ;  this  book 
came  as  an  inspired  revelation  to  the  minds  of  its 
readers. 

As  Mr.  John  Morley  says,  in  his  work  on  Rousseau, 
in  spite  of  its  "  shallowness  [and]  practical  mischievous- 
ness  ...  it  was  the  match  which  kindled  revolutionary 
fire  in  generous  breasts  throughout  Europe.  .  .  .  His 
theory  made  the  native  land  what  it  had  been  to  the 
citizens  of  earlier  date,  a  true  centre  of  existence,  round 
which  all  the  interests  of  the  community,  all  its  pursuits, 
all  its  hopes,  grouped  themselves  with  entire  singleness 
of  convergence,  just  as  a  religious  faith  is  the  centre  of 
existence  to  a  church."  Further,  it  added  to  this  "the 
cardinal  service  of  rekindling  the  fire  of  patriotism,  the 
rapid  deduction  from  the  doctrine  of  the  sovereignty  of 
peoples  of  the  great  truth,  that  a  nation  with  a  civilised 
polity  does  not  consist  of  an  order  or  a  caste,  but  of  the 
great  body  of  its  members,  the  army  of  toilers  who  make 
the  most  painful  of  the  sacrifices  that  are  needed  for 
the  continuous  nutrition  of  the  social  organisation.  As 
Condorcet  put  it,  and  he  drew  inspiration  partly  from 
the  intellectual  school  of  Voltaire,  and  partly  from  the 
social   school   of    Rousseau,   all   institutions   ought  to 


1 2  PESTALOZZI. 

have  for  their  aim  the  physical,  intellectual  and  moral 
amelioration  of  the  poorest  and  most  numerous  class. 
This  is  the  People." 

Commencing  with  a  sentence,  '*  Man  is  born  free, 
and  everywhere  he  is  in  chains " — which  must  have 
thrilled  the  heart  of  every  reformer — Rousseau  professes 
to  prove  to  demonstration  (in  the  Contrat  Social)  the 
following  principles : — (i)  A  society,  community,  or 
state  is  the  outcome  of  a  social  compact  by  which 
men,  freely  and  voluntarily,  bind  themselves  to  obey 
"  the  general  will  "  :  "  Each  of  us  puts  his  person  and 
all  his  powers  under  the  sovereign  direction  of  the 
general  will ;  and  we  receive  every  member  as  an  in- 
separable part  of  the  whole  ".  This  is  for  the  purpose 
of  defending  and  protecting  the  person  and  property  of 
each.  (2)  The  body  thus  formed  is  the  sovereign  power 
— the  sovereign  and  the  body  politic  are  one  and  the  same 
thing.  Every  member  is  a  citizen  in  that  he  is  a  part  of 
the  sovereign  power,  and  a  subject  in  that  he  owes 
obedience  to  the  laws  made  by,  or  through,  the  sovereign 
power.  (3)  The  sovereign  power  is  inalienable  and 
indivisible,  i.e.,  the  sovereign  power  itself  is  not  subject 
to  the  laws  it  makes ;  and  the  sovereign  power  cannot 
exercise  its  legislative  functions  through  one  body  and 
its  executive  powers  through  another.  (4)  The  general 
will  of  the  sovereign  power  in  regard  to  a  matter  of 
common  interest  is  expressed  in  a  law.  Laws,  there- 
fore, cannot  be  made  through  any  kind  of  representative 
institution,  since  only  the  sovereign  power  (the  whole 
community)  can  possess  the  law-making  power  (the 
general  will).  (5)  All  governmental  machinery  con- 
stitutes the  agents  and  go-betweens  of  the  sovereign 
power  as  a  whole  and  its  members  as  the  parts ;  to  the 


THE  "CONTRAT  SOCIAL".  1 3 

end  that  civil  and  political  freedom  for  each  and  all 
may  be  properly  maintained.  The  government  may  be 
a  monarchy,  i.e.,  when  there  is  one  magistrate  from 
whom  all  the  rest  hold  their  authority ;  an  aristocracy, 
i.e.,  when  there  are  more  simple  citizens  than  magis- 
trates ;  or  a  democracy,  i.e.,  when  there  are  more  citizen 
magistrates  than  private  citizens.  (6)  The  sovereign 
power  should  establish  a  purely  civil  profession  of 
religious  faith,  consisting  of  a  belief  in  God :  a  future 
state:  happiness  of  the  righteous  and  punishment  of 
the  wicked :  the  sanctity  of  the  social  contract  and  the 
laws. 

Such  is  a  brief  and  bald  outline  of  the  theory  of  the 
Contrat  Social,  the  book  which  was  one  of  the  more 
immediate  causes  of  the  French  Revolution,  and  which 
had  such  a  powerful  influence  upon  its  Swiss  readers 
that,  in  1762,  the  government  of  Geneva  caused  a  copy 
of  it  to  be  publicly  burnt.  Pestalozzi  has  put  on  record 
that  he  was  himself  greatly  influenced  by  the  reading 
of  the  book  ;  and  his  own  political  wTitings  plainly  show 
this.  He,  like  other  good  patriots,  did  everything  pos- 
sible to  bring  about  a  better  state  of  things. 

The  new  spirit  of  national,  as  against  state,  patriotism 
which  was  fast  spreading  found  active  expression  in 
and  through  the  founding,  in  1762,  of  the  Helvetic  Society. 
This  was  largely  due  to  the  influence  of  Balthasar's 
book ;  and  the  society  consisted  of  such  zealous  patriots 
as  Gessner,  Hirzel  and  Iselin.  Pestalozzi  appears  to 
have  been  one  of  the  earliest,  if  not  one  of  the  original 
members.  Both  Catholics  and  Protestants  worked  to- 
gether in  this  society.  Soon  all  the  most  famous  men 
of  both  French  and  German  Switzerland  attended  its 
annual   meetings;   at  which  patriotism   and   national- 


14  PESTALOZZI. 

ism  were  fostered  :  corruption  and  extortion  in  public 
life  criticised  and  exposed :  the  moral  improvement  of 
individual  life  urged  :  and  the  reform  of  education  and 
civic  government  advocated.  The  society  offered  prizes 
for  plans  for  the  improvement  of  the  educational  system 
of  the  country.  It  gave  active  encouragement  to  Dr. 
Planta,  who  had  started  in  1761  a  school,  at  Halden- 
stein,  on  the  lines  of  the  Philanthropinists — who  sought 
to  carry  out  Rousseau's  principle  of  things  instead  of 
words  in  teaching — through  the  sciences  which  helped 
most  frequently  in  the  affairs  of  daily  life.  Dr.  Planta 
also  sought  to  train  his  pupils  in  human  fraternity, 
patriotism  and  religious  toleration.  Many  distinguished 
men,  who  took  foremost  parts  in  the  national  reforms, 
were  educated  in  this  school. 

Meantime  political  struggles  and  revolts  continued. 
In  one  or  two  towns  and  cantons  the  artisans  and 
peasants  succeeded  in  regaining  some  of  their  old  rights 
and  privileges  ;  but  in  most  cases  all  political  agitations 
and  revolts  were  put  down  with  an  iron  hand,  and 
many  paid  for  their  discontent  with  their  lives.  But 
the  people  caught  the  fever  of  the  French  Revolution, 
and,  in  1798,  the  inhabitants  of  Pays  de  Vaud  rose  in 
rebellion  against  the  authority  of  the  canton  of  Bern. 
This  rising  led  to  others,  and  the  peasants  set  to  work 
to  overthrow  the  conditions  of  feudalism,  and  declared 
themselves  in  favour  of  ''liberty,  equality  and  fra- 
ternity ".  Their  leaders  appealed  to  France  for  aid. 
This  was  given,  with  the  result  that,  in  1798,  thirteen 
states  were  federated,  and  put  under  a  representative 
democracy.  The  government  consisted  of  two  cham- 
bers :  a  senate  and  a  greater  council ;  the  executive  was 
a  directory  of  ftve  members  and   four  ministers;  and 


"THE   HELVETIC  SOCIETY."  1 5 

the  judiciary  was  a  high  court.  Lucerne  was  made  the 
capital. 

One  of  the  clauses  of  the  new  Helvetic  Constitution 
declared  that  education  was  the  chief  foundation  of  the 
public  welfare,  and  in  itself  of  more  value  than  mere 
wealth.  M.  Albrecht  Stapfer  (of  Brugg) — a  man  of  en- 
lightened views — was  appointed  Minister  of  Arts  and 
Sciences,  and  at  once  drew  up  an  admirable  scheme  for 
educational  reform  ;  he  himself  holding  that  "spiritual 
and  intellectual  freedom  alone  makes  free".  All  the 
cantons  were  to  send  him  reports  on  their  schools  and 
education,  with  suggestions  for  improvement.  Federal 
regulations  were  drawn  up  to  secure  a  council  of  educa- 
tion (seven  members)  in  the  chief  town  of  each  canton ; 
a  commissioner  or  inspector  of  schools  ;  and  a  training 
college  for  teachers  in  each  canton.  He  also  provided 
for  the  building  of  grammar-schools;  proposed  the 
founding  of  a  Swiss  university ;  arranged  for  the  es- 
tabHshment  of  a  Swiss  Society  of  Arts  ;  did  all  he  could 
to  encourage  the  formation  of  literary  societies ;  and 
endeavoured  to  preserve,  and  make  public,  monastic 
libraries  and  collections.  He  was  always  the  friend  of 
Pestalozzi  and  did  much  to  help  him. 

Another  man  who  did  much  for  education  at  this  time 
was  Pere  Girard  (1765-1850)  of  Fribourg.  In  17981  he 
published  a  Scheme  for  Education  for  all  Helvetia,  which 
he  addressed  to  M.  Stapfer.  Seven  years  later  he  was 
appointed  as  head  of  the  primary  school  at  Fribourg. 
Here  he  did  a  great  work,  basing  his  work  upon  the 
theory  that  '*  the  only,  the  real  people's  school,  is  that 
in  which  all  the  elements  of  study  serve  for  the  culture 
of  the  soul,  and  in  which  the  child  grows  better  by  the 
things  which  he  learns  and  by  the  manner  in  which  he 


l6  PESTALOZZI. 

learns  them  ".  All  his  school  work  centred  round  the 
teaching  of  the  mother-tongue,  through  which  he 
taught  grammar  (through  lessons  on  things),  logic, 
ideas  and  literature.  He  set  out  his  system  in  the 
Educative  Course  in  the  Mother  Tongue.  Girard,  like 
Pestalozzi,  was  one  of  the  educational  reformers. 

There  was  also  Emmanuel  de  Fellenberg  (1775-1846), 
a  man  of  noble  birth  and  exalted  character,  who,  after 
holding  high  public  offices  and  mixing  much  with  the 
people  and  their  rulers,  became  convinced — through 
reading  Pestalozzi's  Leonard  and  Gertrude — that  only 
by  improvement  in  early  education  could  the  character 
of  a  people  be  made  such  that  national  greatness  could 
be  secured.  He  thereupon  consecrated  himself  and  his 
fortune  to  education  ;  being  then  thirty-one  years  of 
age.  His  first  step  was  to  undertake  the  education  of 
his  own  children,  with  a  few  boys  from  abroad,  at  his 
own  house,  on  his  estate  at  Hofwyl.  Gradually  he 
increased  the  number  of  pupils ;  but  only  by  twos  and 
threes  so  that  the  general  working  should  not  be  much 
disturbed.     These  pupils  were  all  of  the  patrician  class. 

Two  years  later,  1807,  he  set  up  a  *'  Poor  School  "  or 
*'  Agricultural  Institution  "  for  destitute  children.  The 
farm-house  was  used  as  a  school,  and  Vehrli,  the  son  of 
a  schoolmaster  of  Thurgovia,  was  specially  trained  by 
Fellenberg  (in  his  own  house)  to  take  charge  of  the 
institution.  The  aim  was  to  use  agriculture  as  a  means 
of  moral  training  for  the  poor ;  and  to  make  the  institu- 
tion thereby  self-supporting.  Vehrli  left  the  table  of 
Fellenberg  to  share  the  straw  beds  and  vegetable  diet 
of  these  poor  scholars  ;  to  be  their  fellow  labourer  on  the 
farm  ;  to  join  with  them  as  a  play-fellow  in  their  games  ; 
and  to  be  their  teacher. 


EMMANUEL  PELLENBERG.  17 

In  1823  a  school  for  poor  girls  was  built  in  the 
garden  of  the  mansion  ;  and  Fellenberg's  eldest  daughter 
took  charge  of  it.  Four  years  after  (1827)  another  de- 
velopment took  place ;  an  intermediate  school,  or 
"  Practical  Institution,"  was  established.  This  was 
for  the  children  of  the  middle  classes  in  Switzerland. 
The  pupils  belonged  to  the  families  of  men  of  business, 
mechanics  and  professional  men  ;  and  they  were  taught 
such  subjects  as  were  thought  necessary  for  those  who 
were  not  intended  for  the  professions  of  law,  medicine 
and  theology.  Buildings,  furniture,  diet  and  dress 
were  such  as  the  pupils  had  been  used  to  at  home. 
Two  hours  each  day  were  given  to  manual  labour  on 
the  farm  ;  to  gardening  on  a  plot  of  their  own  ;  to  work 
in  the  mechanic's  shop ;  and  in  household  work,  such 
as  taking  care  of  rooms,  books  and  tools. 

Fellenberg  has  given  his  view  of  the  aim  of  education 
in  these  words:  "The  great  object  of  education  is  to 
develop  all  the  faculties  of  our  nature,  physical,  intel- 
lectual and  moral,  and  to  endeavour  to  train  and  unite 
them  into  one  harmonious  system,  which  shall  form 
the  most  perfect  character  of  which  the  individual  is 
susceptible ;  and  thus  prepare  him  for  every  period  and 
every  sphere  of  action  to  which  he  may  be  called  ". 

His  work  attracted  the  attention  of  educators  and 
statesmen  in  Switzerland  and  throughout  Europe. 
Pupils  were  sent  to  him  from  Russia,  Germany,  France 
and  England.  Deputations  from  foreign  Governments, 
and  private  individuals,  visited  Hofwyl  to  study  the 
methods  and  organisation  employed. 

Such  was  the  spirit  of  the  times — so  far  as  so  brief 
an  outline  can  suggest  it — in  which  Pestalozzi  lived 
and  worked.     How  far  it  formed  him  and  how  far  he 

2 


1 8  PESTALOZZI. 

influenced  it  can  be,  in  some  measure,  estimated  when 
his  Hfe  and  work  have  been  considered.  But  we  shall 
understand  each  better  in  proportion  as  we  know  both. 
It  is  worth  while  to  note  what  was  taking  place 
in  other  countries,  in  educational  matters,  during  Pes- 
talozzi's  lifetime.  Bell  (1753-1832),  Lancaster  (1778- 
1838),  Robert  Owen  (1771-1858),  Samuel  Wilderspin 
(1792-1866)  and  Miss  Edgeworth  (1767-1849)  were  do- 
ing their  work  in  Britain  ;  Jacotot  (1770-1840),  Madame 
Necker  de  Saussure  (1765-1841),  Condorcet  (1743-94) 
were  working  in  France;  and  Basedow  (1723-90), 
Oberlin  (1740-1826)  and  Froebel  (1782-1852)  in  Ger- 
many. 

The  thought  and  work  of  such  reformers  in  education 
brought  about  the  greatest  possible  changes  in  the 
schools.  They  may  be  said  to  have  done  for  educa- 
tion what  Bacon,  Descartes,  Locke  and  others  did  for 
philosophy  :  they  changed  its  main  purpose  from  a  theo- 
logical and  religious  one  to  an  intellectual  and  rational. 
For  the  appeal  to  authority  and  tradition  was  substituted 
an  appeal  to  science  and  experiment.  Rabelais  and 
Montaigne  had  done  much  to  prepare  the  way  for  Rous- 
seau ;  whilst  Pestalozzi  did  more  than  any  man  before 
his  time  to  put  the  best  ideas  into  practical  form.  In  all 
spheres  of  thought  the  principle  of  following  Nature  and 
Reason  was  beginning  to  become  predominant  at  this 
period,  and  it  was  applied,  for  the  first  time,  to  education. 
Men  were  freeing  themselves  from  the  bondage  of  verbal- 
ism and  entering  into  the  full  freedom  of  realism,  both 
in  thought  and  action. 


CHAPTER  II. 

EARLY  YEARS  AND  EDUCATION. 

John  Henry  Pestalozzi  was  born  at  Zurich  on  the 
I2th  of  January,  1746.  His  father  was  a  doctor,  an 
able  man,  but  one  who  had  not  the  art,  or  the  will, 
for  achieving  practical  success  in  life.  He  died  when 
Pestalozzi  was  only  six  years  of  age,  and  left  the 
family  in  very  straitened  circumstances.  The  widow, 
with  her  two  boys  and  a  girl,  was  helped  by  members 
of  the  Pestalozzi  family,  and  managed,  thanks  to  this 
help  and  the  cheapness  of  the  best  schooling  in  Zurich,  to 
give  her  children  a  good  education.  In  all  her  domestic 
trials  and  struggles  she  was  most  loyally  and  devotedly 
supported  by  a  faithful  servant  named  Babeli.  When 
on  his  deathbed  Pestalozzi's  father  had  sent  for  this 
girl,  in  whom  he  must  have  had  the  greatest  confidence 
and  trust,  and  said  to  her :  "  Babeli,  for  the  sake 
of  God  and  mercy,  do  not  leave  my  wife ;  when  I  am 
dead  she  will  be  forlorn,  and  my  children  will  fall  into 
strange  and  cruel  hands  ".  Babeli  replied :  "  I  will 
not  leave  your  wife  when  you  die ;  I  will  remain  with 
her  till  death,  if  she  has  need  of  me  ".  This  promise 
she  fulfilled  to  the  letter. 

Not  only  did  she  sternly  second  the  mother's  strict 
economies,  but  she  did  everything  she  could  to  nourish 
in  the  mind  of  her  young  master  that  feeling  of  honest 

19  2  * 


20  PESTALOZZI. 

independence  which  prevailed  in  those  days  almost  with 
the  intensity  of  a  passion.  On  this  point  she  would 
thus  address  him :  ''  Never,  never  has  a  Pestalozzi 
eaten  the  bread  of  private  compassion  since  Zurich  was 
a  city.  Submit  to  any  privation  rather  than  dishonour 
your  family.  Look  at  those  children  (she  would  say  as 
the  poor  orphans  of  Zurich  passed  the  windows),  how 
unfortunate  would  you  be  were  it  not  for  a  tender 
mother,  who  denies  herself  every  comfort  that  you  may 
not  become  a  pauper."  She  would  often  keep  the  chil- 
dren indoors  when  they  wished  to  go  out,  saying  to 
them  :  ''  Why  will  you  needlessly  wear  out  your  shoes 
and  clothes  ?  See  how  much  your  mother  denies  herself 
in  order  to  be  able  to  give  you  an  education ;  how  for 
weeks  and  months  she  never  goes  out  anywhere,  but 
saves  every  farthing  for  your  schooling."  Their  mother 
was,  however,  liberal  in  spending  on  such  things  as 
were  needed  to  keep  up  their  social  position  ;  the 
children  had  handsome  Sunday  clothes,  but  they  had  to 
take  them  off  immediately  they  returned  to  the  house. 

The  tender,  affectionate  and  self-sacrificing  mother, 
and  the  faithful  and  sturdy  maid  devoted  themselves 
wholly  to  the  good  of  the  children.  But  this  loving 
devotion  was  not  without  its  drawbacks  for  Pestalozzi. 
As  he  himself  says :  "  I  was  brought  up  by  the  hand 
of  the  best  of  mothers  like  a  spoilt  darling,  such  that 
you  will  not  easily  find  a  greater.  From  one  year  to 
another  I  never  left  the  domestic  hearth ;  in  short,  all 
the  essential  means  and  inducements  to  the  develop- 
ment of  manly  vigour,  manly  experience,  manly  ways 
of  thinking,  and  manly  exercises  were  just  as  much 
wanting  to  me  as,  from  the  peculiarity  and  weakness  of 
my  temperament,  I  especially  needed  them."     As  one 


SCHOOL  LIFE.  21 

of  his  biographers,  Dr.  Biber,  remarks  :  "  The  influ- 
ence which  he  enjoyed  at  home  operated  powerfully 
upon  the  growth  of  his  feelings  and,  in  the  absence  of 
an  equally  efficacious  cultivation  of  his  intellect,  gave 
to  his  character  that  intense  energy,  uncontrolled  by 
clearness  of  judgment,  which,  while  it  prepared  for  him 
many  a  grievous  disappointment  in  the  long  course  of 
his  philanthropic  career,  gave  also  to  his  soul  that  un- 
abated elasticity  to  rise,  after  every  downfall,  with  re- 
novated strength  ". 

He  was  first  sent  to  a  day-school,  then  to  a  grammar- 
school,  where  he  was  kept  under  the  bondage  of  rigorous 
discipline  and  uninteresting  tasks,  and  finally  he  passed 
to  a  college  where  youths  received  due  preparation  for 
the  learned  professions.  It  is  not  surprising,  in  view  of 
what  we  are  told  of  his  home  training,  to  find  him 
writing  of  his  early  school-days  thus :  "  In  all  boys' 
games  I  was  the  most  clumsy  and  helpless  among  all 
my  fellow  scholars,  and  nevertheless,  in  a  certain  way, 
I  always  wanted  to  excel  the  others.  This  caused  some 
of  them  very  frequently  to  pass  their  jokes  upon  me. 
One  of  them  gave  me  the  nickname  '  Harry  Oddity  of 
Foolstown '.  Most  of  them,  however,  liked  my  good- 
natured  and  obliging  disposition,  though  they  knew  my 
general  clumsiness  and  awkwardness,  as  well  as  my 
carelessness  and  thoughtlessness,  in  everything  that  did 
not  particularly  interest  me. 

"Accordingly,  although  one  of  the  best  pupils,  I 
nevertheless  committed  with  incomprehensible  thought- 
lessness faults  of  which  not  even  the  worst  of  them  was 
ever  guilty.  While,  I  generally  seized  with  quickness 
and  accuracy  upon  the  essential  matter  of  the  subjects 
gf  instruction^   I   was   very   generally   indifferent   and 


22  PESTALOZZI. 

thoughtless  as  to  the  forms  in  which  it  was  given.  At 
the  same  time  that  I  was  far  behind  my  fellow  scholars 
in  some  parts  of  a  subject,  in  other  parts  of  the  same 
subject  I  often  surpassed  them  in  an  unusual  degree.  .  .  . 
The  wish  to  be  acquainted  with  some  branches  of  know- 
ledge that  took  hold  on  my  heart  and  my  imagination, 
even  though  I  neglected  the  means  of  acquiring  them, 
was  nevertheless  enthusiastically  alive  within  me ;  and, 
unfortunately,  the  tone  of  public  instruction  in  my 
native  town  at  this  period  was  in  a  high  degree  calculated 
to  foster  this  visionary  fancy  of  taking  an  active  interest 
in,  and  believing  oneself  capable  of  the  practice  of  things 
in  which  one  had  by  no  means  had  sufficient  exercise, 
and  this  fancy  was  very  prevalent  among  the  youth  of 
my  native  town  generally." 

Though  he  seldom,  because  of  a  want  of  inclination 
and  physical  capacity,  joined  in  the  games  and  pursuits 
of  his  fellows,  yet  he  did  not  withdraw  himself  from  his 
schoolmates  in  any  morose  or  selfish  spirit.  He  was 
always  frank,  kind-hearted  and  willing  to  be  helpful, 
though  he  was  the  butt  for  boyish  jokes.  Indeed,  on 
one  occasion  at  least  his  courage  and  comradeship 
proved  superior  to  that  of  the  others.  In  the  severe 
earthquake  of  1755  the  school-house  in  which  he  was 
taught  was  severely  shaken.  A  panic  was  caused  and 
the  teachers  and  scholars  rushed  out  of  the  school,  the 
former  ''almost  over  the  heads  of  their  boys".  After 
they  had  recovered  from  their  first  terror  they  wished  to 
obtain  the  books,  hats  and  other  property  which  they 
had  left  behind  ;  but  being  unwilling  to  venture  into  the 
building  they  persuaded  "  Harry  Oddity  "  to  undertake 
the  task. 

When   he  was  nine  years  old   he  began  to  pay  an 


THE   SCHOOLS   OF   HIS   TIME.  2$ 

annual  holiday  visit  to  his  grandfather,  who  was  pastor 
of  Hongg,  in  the  canton  of  Zurich.  These  visits  lasted 
for  several  months  each  year,  and  doubtless  had  some 
influence  in  moulding  the  lad's  character  and  determin- 
ing his  views,  for  his  grandfather  was  an  excelle^it  type 
of  village  pastor.  He  took  the  closest  interest  in  every- 
thing that  concerned  the  welfare  of  his  flock,  and  more 
especially  in  the  village  school.  Pestalozzi  would,  dur- 
ing his  visits,  see  a  good  deal  of  the  sufferings  of  the 
poor,  and  of  the  good  which  a  benevolent  and  zealous 
helper  could  do  amongst  them.  Of  his  grandfather's 
school  he  writes,  in  his  last  years :  "  His  school,  how- 
ever defective  it  might  be  in  point  of  method,  was  in 
living  connection  with  the  moral  life  and  the  home 
education  of  the  people,  and  this  combined  education 
cultivated  successfully  and  thoroughly  the  practice  of 
habits  of  attention,  obedience,  industry  and  effort ;  in 
short,  laid  the  fundamental  foundations  of  education '' 
(Swan's  Song). 

Doubtless  he  would  see  many  other  schools  in  his 
early  years  ;  and  they  must  have  influenced  his  mind  very 
much.  One  writer  thus  describes  the  ordinary  Swiss 
school  of  those  days:  "The  instruction  was  generally 
given  in  the  schoolmaster's  only  living  room,  while  his 
family  were  carrying  on  their  household  avocations.  In 
places  where  there  were  schoolrooms,  they  were  never 
large  enough  to  provide  sufficient  space  for  all  the 
children  to  sit  down.  The  rooms  were  low  and  dark, 
and  when  the  door  was  opened  the  oppressive  fumes  of 
a  hot  and  vitiated  atmosphere  met  the  visitor ;  closely 
crammed  together  sat  the  children,  to  the  ruin  of  their 
health,  breathing  in  the  foul  and  heated  vapours.  The 
stoves,  too,  were  generally  overheated,  and  the  closed 


24  PESTALOZZI. 

windows  were  darkened  by  the  steam  from  the  breath 
of  so  many  human  beings ;  so  crowded  together  were 
they,  that  if  one  wished  to  leave  or  return  to  his  place, 
he  must  climb  over  chairs  and  tables  to  do  so. 

**  The  noise  was  deafening  ;  the  schoolmaster  had  little 
authority  over  his  pupils  ;  there  was  no  fixed  age  at  which 
children  were  either  sent  or  withdrawn ;  parents  would 
frequently  send  them  at  four  or  five,  and  take  them  away 
as  soon  as  they  could  earn  any  money,  generally  in 
their  eighth  or  ninth  year.  The  instruction  was  bad  and 
irregular.  A  child  who  could  say  the  whole  catechism 
through  was  considered  clever,  but  one  who  could  repeat 
the  iigth  Psalm  and  a  few  chapters  of  the  Bible  by  heart, 
was  looked  upon  as  a  real  marvel.  The  more  that  could 
be  said  by  rote,  the  greater  pleased  were  the  parents"  (F. 
E.  Cooke,  Guiding  Lights'). 

Morf,  a  biographer  of  Pestalozzi,  collected  informa- 
tion about  the  teachers  and  schools  of  Pestalozzi's  times. 
The  teachers  were  very  ignorant,  often  poor  working 
men  who  kept  school  to  increase  their  small  earnings  in 
other  occupations.  Of  the  schools  Morf  says  :  ''We  find 
hardly  any  trace  of  a  proper  schoolroom.  The  choice  of 
a  teacher  often  depended,  not  on  his  ability,  but  on  his 
having  a  room — his  family  remained  in  it  and  carried 
on  their  domestic  duties  during  school  hours.  Often 
neighbours  brought  their  spinning  wheels,  finding  more 
warmth  and  entertainment  than  at  home.  .  .  . 

'*  Reading  and  learning  by  heart  were  the  pupils'  only 
tasks.  The  big  ones  were  learning  aloud,  so  there  was 
a  constant  hubbub  in  the  school.  Class  teaching  was 
not  thought  of." 

Of  the  way  in  which  schoolmasters  were  appointed, 
Kriisi,  Pestalozzi's  first  assistant,  gives  a  very  interesting 


THE  SCHOOLS  OF   HIS   TIME.  2$ 

account.  Kriisi,  as  a  lad  and  when  a  young  man,  earned 
his  living  by  travelling  about  the  country  buying  and 
selling  small  wares.  One  summer  day  as  he  was  cross- 
ing a  mountain,  carrying  a  heavy  load  of  thread,  he  met 
M.  Gruber,  the  State  Treasurer,  and  this  conversation 
took  place : — 

*' '  It's  very  hot,  Hermann,'  "  said  Kriisi. 

"  '  Yes,  very  hot.' 

** '  As  Hoerlin,  the  schoolmaster,  is  leaving  Gais  you 
might  perhaps  earn  your  living  less  laboriously.  Would 
you  not  like  to  try  for  this  post  ?  ' 

'' '  It  is  not  simply  a  question  of  what  I  would  like : 
a  schoolmaster  ought  to  have  knowledge  of  matters  of 
which  I  am  wholly  ignorant.' 

"  '  You  could  easily  learn,  at  your  age,  all  that  a  school- 
master there  ought  to  know.' 

'' '  But  where  and  how  ?  I  do  not  see  any  possibility 
of  this.' 

"  '  If  you  have  any  inclination  for  it,  the  way  can  easily 
be  found.     Think  about  it,  and  do  not  delay.' 

"  Upon  this  he  left  me. 

''  I  considered  and  reflected,  but  no  light  seemed  to 
come  to  me.  However  I  rapidly  descended  the  moun- 
tain hardly  feeling  the  weight  of  my  load. 

*'  My  friend  Sonderegger  procured  a  single  specimen 
of  writing,  done  by  a  skilful  penman  of  Altstatten,  and 
I  copied  it  over  a  hundred  times.  This  was  my  only  pre- 
paration. Nevertheless,  I  sent  in  my  name,  but  with 
little  hope  of  success. 

''There  were  only  two  candidates.  The  chief  test 
consisted  in  writing  out  the  Lord's  Prayer,  which  I  did 
with  all  the  care  of  which  I  was  capable. 

"  I  had  carefully  noticed  that  capitals  were  used  here 


26  PESTALOZZI. 

and  there,  but  as  I  was  ignorant  of  the  rule  I  had  taken 
them  for  ornament.  Accordingly  I  distributed  mine  in  a 
symmetrical  manner,  with  the  result  that  some  came  in 
the  very  middle  of  words.  As  a  matter  of  fact  neither 
of  us  knew  anything. 

"  When  the  examination  was  over,  I  was  sent  for  and 
Captain  Schgepfer  announced  to  me  that  the  examiners 
had  found  us  both  very  weak ;  that  my  competitor  could 
read  the  better,  but  that  I  was  the  better  writer ;  that 
as  I  was  only  eighteen  years  old,  while  the  other  was 
forty,  I  should  be  better  able  to  acquire  the  necessary 
knowledge ;  that,  moreover,  my  room,  being  bigger  than 
that  of  the  other  applicant,  was  more  suitable  for  a 
schoolroom ;  and,  in  short,  I  was  nominated  to  the 
vacant  post."  So  Kriisi's  room  was  cleared  of  some  old 
furniture,  and  a  hundred  children  were  put  into  it.  This 
was  in  1793. 

While  at  college  Pestalozzi  came  under  the  teach- 
ing of  men  who  exercised  a  great  influence  upon  him, 
viz.,  Bodmer,  the  Professor  of  History,  and  Breitinger, 
the  Professor  of  Greek  and  Hebrew;  and  he  had  as 
his  contemporaries  Lavater,  Iselin,  the  Eschers  and 
others  whose  names  are  connected  with  the  national 
history  of  this  period.  Of  the  teaching  he  says  :  "  In- 
dependence, freedom,  beneficence,  self-sacrifice  and  pa- 
triotism were  the  watchwords  of  our  public  education. 
But  the  means  of  attaining  all  this  which  was  par- 
ticularly commended  to  us — mental  distinction — was  left 
without  solid  and  sufficient  training  of  the  practical 
ability  which  is  its  essential  condition. 

"  We  were  taught,  in  a  visionary  manner,  to  seek  for 
independence  in  an  abstract  acquaintance  with  truth, 
without  being  made  to  feel  strongly  what  was  essentially 


HIS  COLLEGE  LIFE.  27 

necessary  to  the  security  both  of  our  inward  and  of  our 
outward  domestic  and  civil  independence.  The  tone 
of  the  instruction  which  we  received  led  us,  with  much 
vivacity  and  many  attractive  representations,  to  be  so 
short-sighted  and  inconsiderate  as  to  set  little  value 
upon,  and  almost  to  despise,  the  external  means  of 
wealth,  honour  and  consideration.  This  was  carried 
to  such  an  extent  that  we  imagined,  while  we  were  yet 
in  the  condition  of  boys,  that,  by  a  superficial  school- 
acquaintance  with  the  great  civil  life  of  Greece  and 
Rome,  we  could  eminently  prepare  ourselves  for  the 
little  civil  life  in  one  of  the  Swiss  cantons." 

During  his  college  course,  and  when  only  fifteen  years 
of  age,  he  joined  a  branch  of  the  Helvetic  Society,  which 
had  been  started  by  Lavater,  and  had  amongst  its 
m.embers  such  men  as  Schinz,  Fiissli  and  Escher.  The 
aim  of  these  young  men  was  to  begin  immediate  reforms 
in  the  territory  of  Zurich ;  and  to  support  the  down- 
trodden and  poor  in  their  demands  for  the  extension  of 
the  rights  of  the  people.  The  society  met  weekly,  and 
chiefly  occupied  itself  in  debating  Rousseau's  political 
ideas.  But  they  by  no  means  confined  themselves  to 
talk.  They  founded  a  weekly  journal  called  Der  Erin- 
nerer,  in  1765,  wherein  they  gave  publicity  to  their 
views ;  and  did  not  hesitate  to  attack,  in  the  most 
frank  and  fearless  manner,  public  abuses,  dishonest  and 
tyrannical  ofiicials,  worthless  ministers,  and  any  person 
or  practice  which  seemed  to  them  to  stand  in  need  of 
reform. 

Pestalozzi,  then  only  nineteen  years  of  age,  wrote 
articles  for  this  magazine.  Amongst*  other  ideas  he 
expressed  in  this  paper  were  the  following :  ''  A  young 
man  who  plays  such  a  small  part  in  his  country  as  I 


28  PESTALOZZI. 

do,  has  no  right  to  criticise,  or  to  suggest  improve- 
ments ;  at  least  people  tell  me  this  nearly  every  da)^  of 
my  life.  But  at  any  rate  I  may  be  allowed  to  express 
my  wishes  .  .  .  that  no  eminent  man  may  think  it 
beneath  his  dignity  to  work  with  untiring  courage  for 
the  public  good ;  that  no  one  may  look  down  with  con- 
tempt on  his  fellow-creatures  of  inferior  station,  if  they 
are  really  faithful  and  industrious  men  .  .  .  that  some- 
one may  publish  a  little  collection  of  the  principles 
of  education,  sound  and  simple,  so  that  the  average 
townsman,  or  the  average  countryman,  could  understand 
them ;  and  that  some  generous  individuals  would  dis- 
tribute this  little  book  free  of  charge,  or  at  the  price  of 
a  half-penny,  so  that  all  the  clergy  both  in  town  and 
country  might  circulate  and  recommend  it ;  and  finally, 
that  all  parents  who  read  it,  might  act  in  accordance 
with  such  wise  rules  of  Christian  education."  The 
ardent  spirits  who  thus  criticised  their  pastors  and 
masters  soon  got  into  trouble.  The  paper  was  sup- 
pressed ;  one  young  theologian  had  to  flee  from  Zurich ; 
and  Pestalozzi  was  arrested,  with  several  others,  and 
condemned  to  pay  the  costs  of  an  action. 

Of  the  actual  influence  of  Rousseau's  writings  upon 
himself  Pestalozzi  says:  "The  moment  Rousseau's 
Entile  appeared,  my  visionary  and  highly  speculative 
mind  was  enthusiastically  seized  by  this  visionary  and 
highly  speculative  book.  I  compared  the  education 
which  I  enjoyed  in  the  corner  of  my  mother's  parlour, 
and  also  in  the  school  which  I  frequented,  with  what 
Rousseau  demanded  for  the  education  of  his  Emilius. 
The  home  as  well  as  the  public  education  of  the  whole 
world,  and  of  all  ranks  of  society,  appeared  to  me  alto- 
gether as  a  crippled  thing,  which  was  to  find  a  universal 


INFLUENCED   BY   ROUSSEAU.  29 

remedy  for  its  present  pitiful  condition  in  Rousseau's 
lofty  ideas.  The  ideal  system  of  liberty,  also,  to  which 
Rousseau  imparted  fresh  animation,  increased  in  me  the 
visionary  desire  for  a  more  extended  sphere  of  activity, 
in  which  I  might  promote  the  vv^elfare  and  happiness  of 
the  people.  Juvenile  ideas  as  to  what  it  v^as  necessary 
and  possible  to  do  in  this  respect  in  my  native  town, 
induced  me  to  abandon  the  clerical  profession,  to  which 
I  had  formerly  leaned,  and  for  which  I  had  been  de- 
stined, and  caused  the  thought  to  spring  up  vv^ithin  me, 
that  it  might  be  possible,  by  the  study  of  law,  to  find  a 
career  that  would  be  likely  to  procure  for  me,  sooner  or 
later,  the  opportunity  and  means  of  exerting  an  active 
influence  on  the  civil  condition  of  my  native  town,  and 
even  of  my  native  land." 

One  writer  (Henning)  says  that  Pestalozzi  once  told 
him  that  his  heart  was  so  filled,  in  his  youth,  with 
enthusiasm  for  patriotism  and  zeal  for  the  rights  of  the 
oppressed,  that  he  earnestly  strove  to  think  out  any 
and  every  means  of  deliverance  for  the  poor  and  down- 
trodden ;  and  so  desperate  was  he  for  something  effectual 
to  be  done,  that  he  might  easily  have  become  persuaded 
that  the  killing  of  despots  was  no  murder.  Fortunately 
he  was  content  to  try  more  sensible  and  successful 
methods. 

No  doubt  his  resolve  to  forego  the  ministry  was,  to 
some  extent  at  least,  due  to  the  fact  that  on  his  ap- 
pearance as  a  candidate  he  was  unable  to  say  the  Lord's 
Prayer  correctly,  and  broke  down  three  times  in  his 
sermon.  In  his  study  of  law  he  seems  to  have  followed 
the  characteristic  bent  of  his  mind  and  character,  and 
was  more  concerned  to  learn  of  the  principles  and 
methods  of  good  government  than  the  way  to  win  cases. 


30  PESTALOZZI. 

This  is  shown  by  an  essay  on  the  constitution  of  Sparta 
and  a  translation  of  some  of  Demosthenes'  orations, 
which  he  published  at  the  time  ;  and  which  also  show 
his  thoroughness  in  research  and  his  proficiency  in 
classical  learning. 

The  more  he  got  to  know  of  the  highest  ideals  of 
those  principles  of  freedom  and  justice  which  should 
control  individual  and  national  life,  the  more  clearly  he 
saw  the  shortcomings  and  evils  of  the  life  around  him. 
He  saw  that  the  education  and  training,  both  at  school 
and  in  practical  life,  of  those  who  filled  the  highest 
offices — ^judges,  ministers  and  public  officials  of  all 
kinds — were  quite  unsuited  to  fit  them  for  their  work ; 
and  that  the  corruption  and  fraud  which  arose  chiefly 
from  their  incompetence  degraded  and  despoiled  the 
common  people.  He  expressed  his  views  in  an  essay 
on  the  relation  which  education  ought  to  bear  to  the 
various  professions  and  callings.  This  was  published 
while  he  was  still  a  student  at  law. 

He  appears  to  have  written  a  good  deal  on  various 
subjects  dealing  with  law  and  politics ;  and  he  also 
collected  extensive  materials  for  a  book  on  the  history 
of  law  and  politics  in  Switzerland.  Hard  and  unre- 
mitting study,  and  the  mental  stress  of  his  intellectual 
struggles  proved  too  much  for  his  constitution,  already 
impaired  by  the  excessive  demands  he  had  made  upon 
it  by  reason  of  the  zeal  and  intensity  with  which  he 
took  up  and  carried  out  his  ideas.  Among  other  things 
he  had  thrown  himself  whole-heartedly  into  the  general 
enthusiasm  of  the  reformers  for  the  revival  of  agriculture 
as  a  means  for  the  salvation  of  the  poor,  and  the  remedy 
for  all  evils.  Stirred  by  the  teachings  of  Bodmer  and 
the  writings  of  Rousseau,  many  of  the  best  students  in 


BREAKDOWN    IN    HEALTH.  3 1 

the  college  learnt  farming  and  practised  the  simple  life. 
Writing  to  a  friend,  in  the  autumn  of  1765,  Bodmer  says 
of  them:  ''they  have  already  learned  to  mow,  and  to 
bear  heat,  perspiration  and  rain  with  the  peasants  ". 

Pestalozzi  is  said  to  have  practised  vegetarianism ;  to 
have  slept,  unclothed,  on  the  floor  of  his  room  ;  and  even 
to  have  whipped  himself  till  he  bled,  to  fit  himself  to 
undergo  any  suffering  that  might  be  necessary.  Little 
wonder  that  he  became  seriously  ill,  and  exhausted  in 
body  and  mind. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  BEGINNING  OF  HIS  LIFE-WORK. 

Advised  by  his  doctor  to  give  up  study  for  a  time  and  to 
recuperate  in  the  country ;  and  inspired  by  Rousseau  to 
return  to  the  life  of  nature ;  Pestalozzi  renounced  the 
study  of  books  for  ever,  committed  all  his  manuscripts 
to  the  flames,  and  took  to  farming.  He  went  to  Kirch- 
berg,  in  the  canton  of  Bern,  and  apprenticed  himself 
to  a  farmer  named  Tschiffeli,  a  man  who  had  a  great 
reputation  for  his  knowledge  and  skill  in  farming,  and 
for  his  keen  interest  in  the  welfare  of  the  farm  workers. 
An  out-door  life,  healthy  and  regular  work,  the  quiet  and 
calm  of  country  life,  peaceful  meditation,  and  inter- 
course with  nature  and  men  of  simple  habits,  soon 
restored  him  to  sound  health  and  to  that  childlike 
simplicity  of  thought  and  conduct  which  had  distin- 
guished him  as  a  boy.  From  Tschiffeli  he  learnt  much. 
**  I  had  come  to  him,"  he  says,  "  a  political  visionary, 
though  with  many  profound  and  correct  attainments, 
views  and  prospects  in  political  matters ;  and  I  went 
away  from  him  just  as  great  an  agricultural  visionary, 
though  with  many  enlarged  and  correct  ideas  and  inten- 
tions in  regard  to  agriculture.  My  stay  with  him  only 
had  this  effect :  that  the  gigantic  views  in  relation  to 
my  exertions  were  awakened  within  me  afresh  by  his 
agricultural  plans,  which,  though  difficult  of  execution, 

32 


BECOMES   A   FARMER.  33 

and  in  part  impracticable,  were  bold  and  extensive  ;  and 
that  at  the  same  time  they  caused  me,  in  my  thought- 
lessness as  to  the  means  of  carrying  them  out,  to  fall 
into  a  callousness  the  consequences  of  which  contri- 
buted in  a  decisive  manner  to  the  pecuniary  embarrass- 
ment into  which  I  was  plunged  the  very  first  years  of 
my  rural  life." 

In  1767,  at  the  age  of  twenty-two,  he  resolved  to 
start  a  farm  for  himself.  With  a  small  legacy  from  his 
father  and  some  capital  advanced  by  a  banker  in  Zurich, 
he  bought  about  100  acres  of  waste  land  near  Birrfeld, 
in  the  canton  of  Argovie,  not  far  from  Zurich,  and 
began  to  cultivate  vegetables  and  madder.  He  called 
his  place  Neuhof,  i.e.,  new  farm.  Two  years  later  he 
married  Anna  Schulthess,  a  woman  beautiful  alike  in 
character  and  person,  and  one  who  for  fifty  years  adorned 
his  triumphs  as  worthily  as  she  bore  his  misfortunes 
heroically. 

During  the  year  1770  a  son  was  born  to  them.  This 
they  esteemed  the  highest  possible  blessing,  and  the 
greatest  possible  responsibility.  Pestalozzi  appears  to 
have  tried  to  follow  out  Rousseau's  ideas  in  the  educa- 
tion of  his  boy,  Jacobli ;  and  he  kept  a  diary  of  his  and 
the  child's  progress.  Herein  we  see  the  first  definite 
beginnings  and  developments  of  Pestalozzi's  theories  of 
education.  A  few  extracts  will  show  the  general  char- 
acter and  tendency  of  his  efforts  : — 

''Jan.  27,  1774. —I  drew  his  attention  to  some 
water  which  ran  swiftly  down  a  decline.  He  was  de- 
lighted. I  walked  a  little  lower  down,  and  he  followed 
me,  saying  to  the  water :  '  Wait  a  minute :  I  shall 
come  back  soon'.  Shortly  afterwards  I  took  him  to 
the  bank  of  the  same  stream  again  ;  and  he  exclaimed  : 

3 


34  PESTALOZZI. 

'  Look,  the  water  comes  down,  too ;  it  runs  from  up 
there  and  goes  down  and  down'.  As  we  followed  the 
course  of  the  stream,  I  repeated  several  times  to  him  : 
*  Water  flows  from  the  top  to  the  bottom  of  the  hill '. 

"  I  told  him  the  names  of  several  animals,  saying  : 
'  The  dog,  the  cat,  etc.,  are  animals ;  but  your  uncle, 
John,  and  Nicholas,  are  men.'  I  then  asked  him  : 
'  What  is  a  cow,  a  sheep,  the  minister,  a  goat,  your 
cousin  ?  '  etc.  He  answered  rightly  nearly  every  time, 
his  wrong  answers  being  accompanied  by  a  sort  of 
smile  which  suggested  that  he  did  not  intend  to  answer 
properly.  I  think  that  behind  this  fun  there  must  be  a 
wish  to  show  his  independence  of  will. 

"Feb.  I. — I  taught  him  the  Latin  names  for  the 
various  exterior  parts  of  the  head.  By  figures  and  ex- 
amples I  taught  him  the  meaning  of  words  like  inside, 
outside,  below,  above,  amidst,  beside,  etc.  I  showed 
him  how  snow  turned  into  water  when  brought  indoors. 

"  I  found  that  teaching  was  made  easier  by  changes  of 
the  voices,  i.e.,  by  speaking  now  loud,  now  soft,  now  on 
one  note  and  then  on  another.  But  to  what  might  this 
not  lead  ? 

"  Feb.  2. — I  tried  to  get  him  to  understand  the 
meaning  of  numbers.  At  present  he  knows  their  names, 
which  he  says  by  heart  without  attaching  any  exact 
meaning  to  them.  To  have  a  knowledge  of  words  with 
no  distinct  ideas  of  the  things  they  stand  for  immensely 
increases  the  difficulty  of  getting  to  know  the  truth. 
The  most  ignorant  man  would  have  been  struck  by  this 
fact  if  he  had  been  present  at  our  lesson.  The  child 
had  been  so  used  to  not  associating  any  difference  of 
meaning  with  the  different  names  of  numbers,  that 
this  had  produced  'm  him  a  habit  of  inattention  which 


CHILD-STUDY.  35 

I   have  not   been   able   to   overcome  in  the   slightest 
degree. 

"  Why  have  I  been  so  foolish  as  to  allow  him  to  pro- 
nounce these  important  words  without  taking  care  to 
connect  them,  at  the  same  time,  with  a  clear  idea  of 
their  meaning  ?  Would  it  not  have  been  more  natural 
never  to  make  him  say  '  three,*  before  he  thoroughly 
knew  the  number  two  in  all  possible  examples ;  is  it 
not  in  this  way  that  he  ought  to  be  taught  to  count  ? 
Ah  !  how  much  I  have  departed  from  the  paths  of 
nature  in  trying  to  forestall  her  teaching.  O  truths 
so  important  for  wisdom  and  virtue  !  teach  me  to  be 
upon  my  guard  ! 

"  Allow  yourself  to  be  guided  by  the  child's  propensity 
for  imitation.  You  have  a  stove  in  your  room  :  draw 
it  for  him.  Even  if  he  should  not  succeed  for  a  whole 
year  in  exactly  tracing  the  four  corners,  at  least  he  will 
have  learned  to  sit  still  and  to  work.  The  comparison 
of  mathematical  figures  and  magnitudes  is,  at  the  same 
time,  a  pleasant  matter,  and  an  instruction  in  judgment. 
"  Again,  to  have  his  own  garden,  and  to  get  together 
therein  all  sorts  of  plants  ;  to  collect  butterflies  and 
insects,  and  to  make  an  orderly  classification  of  them, 
with  exactness  and  perseverance — what  a  preparation 
for  social  life  !  What  a  safeguard  against  idleness  and 
stupidity  !  And  how  far  all  this  is  from  our  ordinary 
teaching  which  is  so  little  suited  to  children,  who  ought 
to  learn  first  to  read  the  book  of  nature  ! 

"  Feb.  14. — To-day  I  am  satisfied  :  he  learnt  willingly. 
I  have  played  with  him  :  I  have  been  horseman,  butcher, 
everything  he  wished. 

"  I  drew  some  straight  lines  for  him  to  copy.  Fiissli, 
the  painter,  said  to  me :  All  that  you  do  should  be  done 

3  * 


36  PESTALOZZI. 

thoroughly ;  do  not  pass  from  a  to  6,  until  a  is  perfectly 
known,  and  so  with  all.  Be  in  no  haste  to  advance,  but 
stay  at  the  first  step  until  that  is  thoroughly  well  done ; 
thus  you  will  avoid  confusion  and  waste.  That  all 
should  be  complete,  that  all  should  be  in  order,  not  the 
least  bit  of  confusion — think  how  important  ! 

"  Since  it  is  nature  that  gives  us  our  first  language : 
is  she  not  able  to  give  us  ten  languages  in  the  same 
manner  ?  I  perceive  that  I  am  not  following  closely 
enough  the  course  of  nature  in  the  teaching  of  language. 
It  is  necessary  that  I  should  further  accustom  myself 
always  to  speak  Latin. 

"  Feb.  15. — Lead  your  child  by  the  hand  to  the  great 
scenes  of  nature ;  teach  him  on  the  mountain  and  in 
the  valley.  There  he  will  listen  better  to  your  teaching ; 
the  liberty  will  give  him  greater  force  to  surmount 
difficulties.  But  in  these  hours  of  liberty  it  should  be 
nature  that  teaches  rather  than  you.  Do  not  allow 
yourself  to  prevail  for  the  pleasure  of  success  in  your 
teaching;  or  to  desire  in  the  least  to  proceed  when 
nature  diverts  him ;  do  not  take  away  in  the  least  the 
pleasure  which  she  offers  him.  Let  him  completely 
realise  that  it  is  nature  that  teaches,  and  that  you,  with 
your  art,  do  nothing  more  than  walk  quietly  at  her  side.^ 
When  he  hears  a  bird  warble,  or  an  insect  hum  on  a 
leaf,  then  cease  your  talk ;  the  bird  and  the  insect  are 
teaching;  your  business  is  then  to  be  silent. 

"  But  in  the  few  hours  of  study  when  steady  work 
is  necessary  to  acquire  necessary  knowledge,  no  inter- 
ruption should  be  allowed.  These  hours  ought  to  be  few 
in  number,  but  nothing  should  be  permitted  to  inter- 
rupt them.  In  this  matter  it  is  absolutely  necessary  to 
go  contrary  to  the  natural  bent  for  liberty. 


CHILD-STUDY.  37 

"  Nothing  produces  such  bitter  feeling  as  the  punish- 
ment of  ignorance  as  a  fault.  In  punishing  an  inno- 
cent child  we  lose  our  hold  on  the  heart.  We  must  not 
suppose  that  a  child  knows  of  himself  what  is  harmful 
and  what  in  our  eyes  is  serious. 

"  Plenty  of  joy  and  liberty  and  only  a  few  occasions 
when  the  child  is  obliged  to  fight  against  and  overcome 
his  natural  desires,  will  give  strength  and  courage  to  en- 
dure. Too  much  restraint  lowers  courage,  and  the 
times  of  joy  which  take  its  place  will  fail  of  their  happy 
influence.  The  strongest  and  most  frequent  impres- 
sions are  those  which  determine  character,  for  they 
dominate  the  others.  Because  of  this  it  is  possible  to 
correct  defects  by  education. 

"  Feb.  16  and  17. — I  have  taught  him  to  hold  the 
pencil.  Though  this  be  but  a  very  small  matter,  I  will 
not  permit  him  in  future  to  hold  it  badly,  in  a  single 
instance." 

"Feb.  19. — Liberty  is  a  good  thing;  and  obedience 
is  equally  so.  We  should  re-unite  what  Rousseau  has 
separated.  Impressed  by  the  evils  of  an  unwise  con- 
straint that  only  tends  to  degrade  humanity  he  has  not 
remembered  the  limits  of  liberty. 

"  Let  us  make  use  of  the  wisdom  of  his  principles. 

"  Master  !  be  persuaded  of  the  excellence  of  liberty. 
Do  not  allow  vanity  to  lead  you  astray  and  cause  you 
to  seek  to  produce,  by  your  efforts,  premature  fruits  ;  let 
your  child  be  as  free  as  possible ;  seek  diligently  for 
every  means  of  leaving  him  free,  tranquil  and  good- 
humoured.  Teach  him  everything,  absolutely  every- 
thing, that  is  possible  through  the  realities  of  the  very 
nature  of  things ;  teach  him  nothing  through  words. 
Leave  him  to  himself  to  see,  to  hear,  to  find  out,  to 


58  PESTALOZZI. 

stumble,  to  recover,  and  to  make  mistakes.  No  words 
when  action,  when  doing  a  thing  for  himself,  is  possible  ! 
What  he  can  do  for  himself,  let  him  do  it ;  so  that  he 
may  always  be  occupied,  always  active,  and  that  the 
time  during  which  he  is  left  to  himself  may  be  much 
the  greater  part  of  his  childhood.  You  should  recognise 
that  nature  teaches  better  than  men.  .  .  . 

"  He  must  trust  you.  If  he  frequently  asks  for  some- 
thing you  do  not  think  good,  tell  him  what  the  conse- 
quences will  be,  and  leave  him  his  liberty ;  but  arrange 
it  so  that  the  consequences  shall  be  impressive.  Al- 
ways show  him  the  right  way ;  if  he  departs  from  it, 
and  falls  into  the  mire,  pull  him  out  of  it.  Thus  he  will 
find  himself  in  very  disagreeable  positions  through  not 
having  profited  by  your  warnings,  and  through  having 
enjoyed  complete  liberty.  In  this  way  his  trust  in  you 
will  be  such  that  he  will  not  feel  hurt  when  you  are 
obliged  to  restrain  his  liberty  by  a  prohibition.  It  is 
necessary  for  him  to  be  obedient  to  a  wise  master  or 
the  father  who  gives  good  advice  ;  but  only  in  cases  of 
necessity  ought  the  master  to  prescribe  things." 

In  these  reflections  we  may  clearly  see  the  definite 
beginnings  of  his  ideas  on  : — things  before  words ;  follow- 
ing nature  ;  observation  and  nature  study ;  self-activity 
and  thoroughness  ;  language  teaching  ;  number  teach- 
ing ;  character  training ;  and  orderly  development. 

While  he  was  thus  trying  to  fulfil  the  duties  of  the 
parent-educator,  and  perhaps  in  some  measure  because 
of  this,  his  worldly  affairs  were  going  from  bad  to  worse. 
Bad  soil,  a  faithless  steward,  and  lack  of  practical  ability 
brought  matters  to  a  crisis.  The  banker  who  had  ad- 
vanced capital  to  Pestalozzi  withdrew  it.  However 
the  relatives  of  Pestalozzi's  wife  came  to  the  rescue, 


THE    NEUHOF   INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOL.  39 

and  he  was  enabled  to  carry  on  his  farm ;  and  also  to 
try  to  improve  matters  by  doing  a  little  in  the  way  of 
weaving  and  spinning  cotton.  But  in  spite  of  all  his 
endeavours  matters  continued  to  go  wrong. 

But  his  own  troubles  only  served  to  make  him  think 
more  about  the  sufferings  of  others.  He  asked  himself 
what  had  become  of  all  his  thoughts  about  improving 
the  lot  of  the  poor.  How  was  such  work  to  be  done  ? 
He  had  now  obtained  actual  knowledge  of  the  life  and 
habits  of  the  peasantry,  and  had  made  up  his  mind  that 
reform  and  progress  must  come,  first  and  foremost,  from 
within  an  individual  rather  than  from  without,  and  from 
the  young  rather  than  from  their  elders.  He  resolved, 
therefore,  to  begin  with  the  most  destitute  and  degraded 
children ;  to  educate  them,  in  the  first  place,  through 
their  feelings,  their  ordinary  work,  and  domestic  life : 
and  to  aim  at  making  them  self-respecting  and  self- 
dependent.     His  wife  entirely  agreed  with  him. 

At  this  period  it  was  a  common  practice  to  hand 
over  orphans  or  foundlings  to  the  care  of  farmers  and 
peasants,  who,  ignorant  and  selfish,  cared  for  nothing 
except  getting  all  the  profit  they  could  out  of  the 
arrangement.  The  children  were  made  to  work  very 
hard ;  received  no,  or  bad,  education ;  and  were  often 
forced  to  become  common  beggars,  for  the  advantage  of 
their  degraded  guardians.  Here  was  work  meet  for  him  ; 
and  he  resolved  to  get  together  such  waifs  and  castaways 
and  give  them  an  industrial,  moral  and  intellectual 
education.  The  children  were  to  do  something  towards 
earning  their  keep  by  working  in  his  spinning-mill.  His 
aim  was  "to  call  forth,  and  put  into  action,  the  power 
every  human  being  possesses  of  satisfying  his  needs 
and  doing  his  duty  in  his  state  of  life  ".     His  ideas  were 


40  PESTALOZZI. 

approved  by,  and  he  received  every  encouragement  and 
help  from,  his  friends  Pastor  Schinz  (of  Zurich),  Lavater, 
FussH,  IseHn  (registrar  of  Basle),  and  other  influential 
persons. 

Of  this  purpose  of  theirs  he  says  :  "  My  wife  had  much 
to  suffer  because  of  our  position ;  nevertheless  nothing 
could  shake,  either  in  her  or  in  me,  the  intention  to 
consecrate  our  time,  our  strength,  and  the  remainder  of 
our  fortune  to  the  simplification  of  the  instruction  and 
the  domestic  education  of  the  people"  {Swan  Song).  So, 
during  the  winter  of  1774-75  they  began  their  work. 
Pestalozzi  received  at  his  house  some  children  whom 
he  gathered  together  from  the  neighbourhood :  little 
mendicants  whom  he  found  in  the  villages  and  on  the 
roads.  He  clothed  and  fed  them,  and  cared  for  them 
with  a  father's  affection.  He  had  them  always  with 
him,  and  let  them  take  part  in  all  his  work  in  the 
garden,  on  the  farm,  and  in  the  house.  In  bad  weather 
they  were  occupied  in  spinning  cotton  in  a  large  room 
which  formed  one  floor  of  his  farmhouse.  Only  a  very 
short  time  was  devoted  to  lessons,  and  often  the  instruc- 
tion was  given  whilst  the  children  were  working  with 
their  hands.  He  did  not  make  haste  to  teach  them  to 
read  and  to  write,  being  persuaded  that  this  talent  was 
of  no  use  until  they  knew  how  to  talk.  But  he  un- 
ceasingly occupied  them  in  the  exercise  of  language, 
concerning  subjects  which  were  furnished  by  their  own 
life,  and  he  made  them  repeat  passages  from  the  Bible 
until  they  knew  them  by  heart. 

He  finally  had  about  twenty  children.  These  made 
great  progress  both  in  manual  and  mental  work,  and 
developed  most  satisfactorily  in  morals  and  in  health. 
Many  more  were  anxious  to  share  in  the  advantages 


THE   NEUHOF   INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOL.  4I 

which  were  offered ;  but  Pestalozzi  had  already  more 
than  his  means  allowed,  though  eagerly  anxious  to  take 
in  others.  The  experiment  attracted  general  attention, 
and  was  highly  approved  and  admired.  Subscriptions 
were  offered  him,  and  he  was  advised  to  make  a  public 
appeal  for  support. 

So  Pestalozzi  drew  up,  in  1776,  an  ''Appeal  to  the 
friends  and  benefactors  of  humanity  who  may  be  willing 
to  support  an  institution  designed  to  provide  education 
and  work  for  poor  country  children  ".  After  describing 
how  he  had  already  proved  the  practicability  and  success 
of  reforming  both  the  minds  and  morals  of  destitute  and 
degraded  children,  he  gives  the  following  undertaking, 
provided  that  sufficient  money  is  advanced  to  him  : 
"  The  money  will  be  paid  back  in  ten  years.  .  .  .  The 
number  of  children  admitted  shall  be  according  to  the 
financial  support  given  to  me.  I  promise  to  teach  all 
the  children  to  read,  write  and  calculate.  I  promise  to 
initiate  all  the  boys,  so  far  as  my  knowledge  and  position 
permit  me,  in  all  the  practical  processes  of  small  farming. 
I  understand  the  means  of  cultivation  which  will,  from 
a  small  area  of  land,  yield  the  most  abundant  products. 
I  promise  to  teach  them  how  to  lay  down  artificial 
grass-land ;  to  look  after  and  develop  the  fattening  of 
cattle ;  to  know  by  extensive  experiments  the  different 
grasses  and  the  importance  of  their  proper  mixings; 
the  nature  and  the  use  of  marl ;  the  effects,  still  disputed, 
of  the  repeated  use  of  Hme ;  the  management  of  fruit 
trees,  and,  perhaps,  of  a  few  forest  trees. 

"  All  this  will  arise  out  of  the  position  and  needs  of 
my  estate,  so  that  such  efforts  will  always  be  work 
connected  with  the  needs  of  the  house,  and  not  in  the 
least  a  study  which  necessitates  unproductive  outlay. 


42  PESTALOZZI. 

It  will  also  be  the  household  needs  which  will  furnish 
the  young  girls  opportunity  to  learn  gardening,  domestic 
work  and  needle-work.  The  principal  occupation  in 
bad  weather  will  be  the  spinning  of  fine  cotton. 

"  I  promise  to  give  them  religious  instruction,  con- 
sidered as  a  matter  of  conscience,  and  to  do  all  that  in 
me  lies  to  develop  in  them  a  pure  and  tender  heart." 

He  goes  on  to  point  out  that  the  most  gratifying 
success  has  attended  his  experiment  with  the  twenty 
children  he  has  already  with  him ;  and  states  that  he 
will  be  personally  responsible  for  all  future  charges 
connected  with  them.  He  undertakes  to  make  an 
annual  report  of  his  work  to  the  subscribers,  and  asks 
that  the  work  shall  be  inspected,  and  iio  money  given 
to  him  unless  he  carries  out  his  promises.  After  men- 
tioning the  names  of  well-known  men  who  are  support- 
ing him,  he  makes  a  final  appeal  for  the  confidence  and 
support  of  all  "  friends  of  humanity  ". 

The  response  to  this  appeal  was,  on  the  whole, 
satisfactory — the  Council  of  Commerce  of  the  Bern 
Republic  promised  to  help — and  Pestalozzi  was  enabled 
to  go  on  with  his  work.  In  accordance  with  his  pro- 
mise to  give  his  patrons  a  full  account  of  his  work 
Pestalozzi  wrote  letters  to  the  Ephemerides.  In  these 
he  sets  forth  his  views  as  best  way  of  reforming  the 
working  classes,  through  the  education  of  their  children 
in  establishments  which  combine  agriculture  and  manu- 
facture for  their  training.  He  holds  that  such  institu- 
tions will  be  self-supporting,  because  of  the  earnings  of 
the  children. 

He  says :  "  It  is  possible  to  improve  their  growth, 
strength  and  health  by  a  very  simple  and  economical 
diet ;  for  their  nourishment  consists  [at  Neuhof]  almost 


CHARACTER   OF   THE   PUPILS  AND   THE   WORK.      43 

entirely  of  vegetables,  though  their  work  is  most  con- 
stant and  diligent.  Nevertheless  they  are  robust :  the 
strongest  go  about  in  the  open  bareheaded  and  without 
shoes  or  stockings  (Jacobli,  the  only  son  of  the  director, 
is  not  treated  differently).  It  is  possible,  in  a  short 
time,  to  make  them  reasonably  skilful  in  their  work, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  lead  them  to  acquire  such 
school  knowledge  as  is  suitable  to  their  position." 
Even  the  weakest  and  most  feeble-minded  may  be  re- 
deemed, if  the  director  be  a  true  father  in  his  relations 
to  the  children — but  no  other  way  will  do — the  children 
be  kept  from  the  influence  of  their  parents  :  and  stay 
in  the  institution  for  five  or  six  years.  Pestalozzi  found 
it  necessary  to  have  a  written  agreement  with  parents 
as  to  the  conditions  of  admission,  so  grossly  did  they 
abuse  the  privileges  of  the  institution. 

The  Bern  Agricultural  Society  appointed  some  well- 
known  and  competent  men  to  inspect  the  establishment, 
in  1778,  and  then  issued  a  report  in  which  they  express 
their  full  confidence  in  Pestalozzi  and  his  work.  The 
report  was  issued  as  a  pamphlet,  which  contained  also 
an  account  by  Pestalozzi  himself,  with  a  detailed  de- 
scription of  the  thirty-seven  pupils.  These  descriptions 
give  us  some  idea  of  the  difficulties  of  the  work;  e.g., 
"  They  [two  sisters,  aged  nineteen  and  eleven]  came  to 
me  three  years  ago,  extremely  neglected  in  body  and 
mind  ;  they  had  spent  their  lives  in  begging.  We  have 
had  indescribable  trouble  to  implant  the  beginnings  of 
order,  truthfulness  and  industry  in  them.  The  degree 
of  brutishness  and  ignorance  in  the  elder  passes  all 
belief,  and  her  idleness  is  chronic.  .  .  .  Henri  Vogt,  of 
Mandach,  eleven  ;  has  been  here  three  years ;  can  weave 
well :  has  begun  to  write  :  works  well  at  French  and 


44  PESTALOZZI. 

arithmetic  :  is  exact  and  careful  in  everything  ;  but 
his  heart  seems  to  me  to  be  cunning,  deceitful,  suspici- 
ous and  greedy  ;  he  has  good  health.  .  .  .  Maria  Bsechli, 
eight ;  excessively  feeble  in  intelligence  and  body.  But 
it  will  be  very  very  interesting  for  humanity  to  see  that 
imbecile  children,  roughly  brought  up,  who  would  have 
had  no  resource  except  the  madhouse,  may  be,  by 
affectionate  attentions  appropriate  to  their  feebleness, 
saved  from  this  misery,  and  enabled  to  secure  a  modest 
livelihood  and  an  independent  life.  .  .  .  Henri  Fuchsli, 
of  Brugg,  seven  ;  has  only  been  here  a  few  weeks  ;  seems 
gifted." 

The  staff  is  thus  described  by  Pestalozzi :  "  For  the 
conduct  of  the  establishment  and  in  the  interests  of 
the  children,  I  get  the  most  valuable  assistance  from 
Mile.  Madelon  Spindler,  of  Strasbourg,  who  possesses 
extraordinary  ability  and  astonishing  activity.  I  have, 
besides,  a  master  for  weaving,  and  two  experienced 
weavers ;  a  mistress  for  spinning,  and  two  young  women 
spinners ;  a  man  who  with  the  work  of  winding  com- 
bines the  teaching  of  elementary  reading,  as  well  as 
two  menials  and  two  women-servants  almost  wholly 
occupied  in  farm -work." 

In  spite  of  all  his  hopes  and  efforts  Pestalozzi's  un- 
practical nature  again  betrayed  him,  and  financial  diffi- 
culties once  more  assailed  him.  He  tried  to  find  a 
remedy  for  this  by  considerably  increasing  the  number 
of  children  ;  but  this  only  increased  the  evil.  Parents 
who  were  themselves  common  beggars  complained  most 
bitterly  against  him,  and  persuaded  their  children  to 
run  away — so  that  they  might  enjoy  the  earnings  that 
the  training  and  skill  they  got  from  Pestalozzi  would 
enable  them  to  obtain — but  not  before  they  had  got  a 


CAUSES   OF   FAILURE.  45 

new  suit  of  clothes  at  the  institution.  Untrue  and 
unfair  reports  were  circulated,  came  to  the  ears  of 
subscribers,  and  led  to  the  falling  off  of  subscriptions. 
And  all  this  whilst  Pestalozzi  continued  to  admit 
children  who  arrived  covered  with  rags  and  vermin, 
whom  he  made  clean  and  comfortable ;  he  himself 
partaking  of  the  same  kind  of  food  as  they  had,  except 
that  he  gave  them  the  best  potatoes  whilst  keeping  the 
worst  for  himself. 

"  Every  Sunday,"  he  says,  "  my  house  was  filled  with 
parents,  who  finding  that  the  position  of  their  children 
did  not  answer  to  their  expectations,  and  as  though  to 
encourage  them  in  their  discontent,  treated  me  with  all 
the  arrogance  which  a  horde  of  brutish  mendicants  can 
allow  themselves  in  an  establishment  which  enjoyed 
neither  official  support  nor  imposing  exterior." 

Still  Pestalozzi  struggled  on,  battling  with  ill-health 
and  worse  fortune,  but  nobly  encouraged  and  supported 
by  his  faithful  wife.  When  too  late  he  called  in  the 
help  of  able  and  experienced  men.  But  matters  were 
past  mending,  and  after  two  years  of  painful  perseverance, 
when  husband  and  wife  had  spent  their  last  strength  and 
their  last  shilling,  the  end  came.  The  establishment 
was  closed  in  1700. 

Pestalozzi,  though  still  the  owner  of  house  and  farm, 
was,  in  effect,  as  poor  as  the  beggars  for  whom  he  had 
beggared  himself.  Again  his  friends  and  relations  came 
to  his  rescue  and  kept  his  home  together.  But  his  wife's 
bad  health,  and  his  own  exhausted  condition,  left  them  in- 
capable of  helping  themselves,  and  soon  they  were  with- 
out food,  fuel,  or  money,  and  suffering  from  cold  and 
want. 

Their  sad  condition  called  forth  an  act  of  heroic  de- 


46  PESTALOZZI. 

votion  on  the  part  of  a  domestic  servant,  Elizabeth  Naef, 
of  Kappel,  who  knew  Pestalozzi  through  having  been  in 
the  service  of  one  of  his  relatives.  When  she  heard  of 
their  distress  she  straightway  went  to  Neuhof  and  in- 
sisted upon  succouring  them.  Pestalozzi  tried  hard  to 
dissuade  her  from  sharing  their  sufferings,  but  she  would 
not  be  denied.  She  set  the  house  in  order,  put  the 
garden  straight,  cultivated  a  small  plot  of  land,  and  by 
good  management  and  incessant  labour  kept  the  wolf 
from  the  door.  Well  might  Pestalozzi  take  her  as  his 
model  for  the  noble  Gertrude. 

Nearly  twenty  years  after  he  thus  wrote  of  his  aims 
and  his  work  for  the  children  at  Neuhof:  ''The  thing 
was  not  that  they  should  know  what  they  did  not  know, 
but  that  they  should  behave  as  they  did  not  behave.  .  .  . 
I  lived  for  years  together  in  a  circle  of  more  than  fifty 
pauper  children ;  in  poverty  did  I  share  my  bread  with 
them,  and  lived  myself  like  a  pauper,  to  try  if  I  could 
teach  paupers  to  live  as  men.  The  plan  which  I  had 
formed  for  their  education  embraced  agriculture,  manu- 
facture and  commerce.  In  no  one  of  the  three  de- 
partments did  I  possess  any  practical  ability  for  the 
management  of  details,  nor  was  my  mind  cast  to  keep 
up  persevering  attention  to  little  things ;  and  in  an 
isolated  position,  with  limited  means,  I  was  unable  to 
procure  such  assistance  as  might  have  made  up  for  my 
own  deficiencies.  In  a  short  time  I  was  surrounded  with 
embarrassments  and  saw  the  great  object  of  my  wishes 
defeated.  In  the  struggle,  however,  in  which  this  at- 
tempt involved  me,  I  had  learned  a  vast  deal  of  truth, 
and  I  was  never  more  fully  convinced  of  the  importance 
of  my  views  and  plans  than  at  the  moment  when  they 
seemed  to  be  for  ever  set  at  rest  by  a  total  failure.  .  .  . 


FAILURE  AND   HEROISM.  47 

Before  I  was  aware  of  it  I  was  deeply  involved  in  debt, 
and  the  greater  part  of  my  dear  wife's  property  and  ex- 
pectations had  in  an  instant,  as  it  were,  gone  up  in 
smoke.  .  .  . 

"  Difficulties  might  gradually  have  been  more  or  less 
overcome  if  I  had  not  sought  to  carry  out  my  experi- 
ment on  a  scale  that  was  quite  disproportioned  to  my 
strength,  and  had  I  not  with  almost  incredible  thought- 
lessness wanted  to  convert  it,  in  the  very  beginning,  into 
an  undertaking  which  presupposed  a  thorough  know- 
ledge of  manufactures,  men  and  business,  in  which  I 
was  deficient  in  the  same  proportion  as  they  were 
rendered  necessary  to  me  by  the  direction  which  I  now 
gave  to  my  undertaking. 

"  I,  who  so  much  disapproved  of  hurrying  to  the  higher 
stages  of  instruction  before  a  thorough  foundation  had 
been  laid  in  the  elementary  steps  of  the  lower  stages, 
and  looked  upon  it  as  the  fundamental  error  in  the  educa- 
tion of  the  day,  and  who  also  believed  that  I  was  myself 
endeavouring  with  all  my  might  to  counteract  it  in  my 
plan  of  education,  allowed  myself  to  be  carried  away  by 
illusions  of  the  greater  remunerativeness  of  the  higher 
branches  of  industry,  without  knowing  even  remotely 
either  them  or  the  means  of  learning  and  introducing 
them,  and  to  commit  the  very  faults  in  teaching  my  school- 
children spinning  and  weaving.  ...  I  wanted  to  have 
the  finest  thread  spun  before  my  children  had  gained 
any  steadiness  or  sureness  of  hand  in  spinning  even  the 
coarser  kinds,  and,  in  Hke  manner,  to  make  musHn  fabrics 
before  my  weavers  had  acquired  sufficient  steadiness  and 
readiness  in  the  weaving  of  common  cotton  goods." 

But  there  was  no  "total  failure"  in  the  matter,  for 
over  a  hundred  children  had  been  rescued  from  ignorance 


48  PESTALOZZI. 

and  poverty  and  degradation ;  and  Pestalozzi  rightly 
claimed  that :  "  I  have  proved  that  children  after  having 
lost  health,  strength  and  courage  in  a  life  of  idleness 
and  mendicity  have,  when  once  set  to  regular  work, 
quickly  recovered  their  health  and  spirits  and  grown 
rapidly.  I  have  found  that  when  taken  out  of  their  abject 
condition  they  soon  became  kindly,  trustful  and  sympa- 
thetic ;  that  even  the  most  degraded  of  them  are  touched 
by  kindness,  and  that  the  eyes  of  the  child  who  has  been 
steeped  in  misery  grow  bright  with  pleasure  and  surprise 
when,  after  years  of  hardship,  he  sees  a  gentle  friendly 
hand  stretched  out  to  help  him  ;  and  I  am  convinced 
that  when  a  child's  heart  has  been  touched  the  conse- 
quences will  be  great  for  his  development  and  entire 
moral  character.  ...  It  gives  me  indescribable  pleasure 
to  see  young  children,  boys  and  girls,  formerly  miserable 
little  creatures,  grow  and  develop,  to  see  contentment 
depicted  on  their  faces,  to  teach  their  hands  to  work,  to 
raise  their  souls  to  their  Creator,  to  see  the  tears  of 
innocence  in  prayer  shine  in  the  eyes  of  beloved  children, 
and  to  discern  the  glimmering  of  hope,  of  sentiments, 
and  morals,  worthy  of  the  young,  in  a  degraded  and 
abandoned  race.  It  is  joy  and  happiness  beyond  de- 
scription to  see  human  beings,  the  image  of  their 
Almighty  Creator,  grow  up  in  so  many  forms  and  with 
such  different  gifts,  and  then  perhaps  to  discover,  where 
no  one  expected  it,  in  the  miserable  and  abandoned  son 
of  the  poorest  artisan,  a  great  spirit,  a  genius  to  be 
saved." 

Now  followed  evil  days  for  Pestalozzi.  His  land  was 
let  to  satisfy  his  creditors,  though  he  was  allowed  to 
remain  in  the  house.  *'  His  situation  was  frightful. 
Frequently  in  his  only  too  elegant  country  house  he 


^       DAYS   OF   DARKNESS.  49 

wanted  money,  bread  and  fuel  to  protect  himself  against 
hunger  and  cold.  His  faithful  wife,  who  had  pledged 
nearly  the  whole  of  her  property  for  him,  fell  into  a 
severe  and  tedious  illness  "  (Raumer).  Added  to  this 
was  the  open  contempt  of  his  neighbours,  whose  pre- 
vious feelings  of  unbounded  confidence,  he  tells  us, 
''  changed  into  a  totally  blind  abandonment  of  even  the 
last  shadow  of  respect  for  my  endeavours,  and  of  belief 
in  my  fitness  for  the  accomplishment  of  any  part  of 
them.  ...  My  friends  now  only  loved  me  without  hope  ; 
in  the  whole  circuit  of  the  surrounding  district  it  was 
ever^^where  said  that  I  was  a  lost  man,  that  nothing 
more  could  be  done  for  me." 


CHAPTER  IV. 

PESTALOZZI  AS   A  LITERARY  MAN—"  THE   VOICE  OF  ONE 
CRYING  IN  THE  WILDERNESS." 

Of  the  next  eighteen  years  of  his  life,  immediately 
following  the  closing  of  the  Neuhof  Poor  School,  one 
of  his  biographers  (Dr.  Biber)  writes :  "  After  the 
breaking  up  of  that  institution  we  find  Pestalozzi  in  a 
condition  truly  deplorable.  Dunned  by  his  creditors, 
reviled  by  his  enemies,  insulted  by  men  in  power, 
sneered  at  by  the  vulgar,  treated  with  ingratitude  by 
most  of  those  whom  he  had  served,  and  separated  from 
the  few  that  might  have  been  grateful,  destitute  of  all 
assistance,  but  overwhelmed  with  mortifying  advice, 
cast  down  by  a  succession  of  misfortunes,  and  tor- 
mented by  a  consciousness  of  having  contributed  to 
them  by  his  own  failings,  he  consumed  his  days  in 
painful  desolation  on  the  same  spot  which  he  had  made 
the  dwelling-place  of  love  and  mercy,  but  which  had 
now  become  to  him  an  abode  of  anxiety  and  sorrow. 
He  had  deprived  his  wife,  with  her  only  son,  of  those 
enjoyments  and  advantages  to  which  her  education  and 
circumstances  had  given  her  a  claim  ;  and  he  had  not 
even  to  offer  her,  in  compensation,  the  tranquil  com- 
forts of  retirement. 

"  He  was  riveted  with  his  family  to  a  ruined  and 
disordered    economy,   which,    at   every    step,    brought 

50 


MADE   PERFECT   THROUGH   SUFFERINCx.  5 1 

painful  recollections  and  anxious  prospects  before  his 
mind.  Of  the  cause  which  lay  nearest  his  heart  he 
durst  not  speak,  even  in  a  whisper ;  a  sarcastic  hint 
as  to  the  success  of  his  undertaking  would  have  been 
the  answer.  He  was  obliged  to  conceal  from  mankind 
the  love  he  bore  them,  and  to  take  it  for  tender  compas- 
sion on  their  part  if  they  considered  him  no  worse  than 
a  lunatic." 

Another  writer  has  well  said:  "Eighteen  years! — 
what  a  time  for  a  soul  like  his  to  wait !  History 
lightly  passes  over  such  a  period.  Ten,  twenty,  thirty 
years— it  makes  but  a  cipher  difference  if  nothing  great 
happens  in  them.  But  with  what  agony  must  he  have 
seen  day  after  day,  year  after  year  gliding  by,  who  in 
his  fervent  soul  longed  to  labour  for  the  good  of  man- 
kind and  yet  looked  in  vain  for  the  opportunity ! " 
(Palmer). 

Not  in  vain,  however,  was  this  time  of  tribulation. 
Like  John  the  Baptist  of  old  he  was  preparing  his 
message  for  the  world.  In  deep  communings  with  his 
own  heart  and  mind,  such  as  all  great  souls  seem 
to  undergo,  he  still  worked  out  his  plan  of  salvation 
for  the  common  people.  His  noble  ideals  were  but 
chastened  and  clarified  by  the  waters  of  affliction. 
Experience  taught  him  but  did  not  pervert  him.  He 
believed  more  firmly  than  ever  in  his  ideals  because  he 
saw  more  clearly  and  fully  their  need  and  truth.  He 
says :  "  Even  while  I  was  the  sport  of  men  who  con- 
demned me  I  never  lost  sight  for  a  moment  of  the 
object  I  had  in  view,  which  was  the  removal  of  the 
causes  of  the  misery  that  I  saw  on  all  sides  of  me.  My 
strength  too  kept  on  increasing,  and  my  own  misfor- 
tunes taught  me  valuable  truths.     I  knew  the  people  as 

4* 


52  PESTALOZZI. 

on  one  else  did.  What  deceived  no  one  else  always  de- 
ceived me,  but  what  deceived  everybody  else  deceived 
me  no  longer.  .  .  .  My  own  sufferings  have  enabled  me 
to  understand  the  sufferings  of  the  people  and  their 
causes  as  no  man  without  suffering  can  understand 
them.  I  suffered  what  the  people  suffered  and  saw 
them  as  no  one  else  saw  them ;  and  strange  as  it  may 
seem,  I  was  never  more  profoundly  convinced  of  the 
fundamental  truths  on  which  I  had  based  my  under- 
taking than  when  I  saw  that  I  had  failed." 

Not  all  his  friends  failed  him  in  his  sorest  need.  His 
old  college  friend  Iselin,  who  was  now  editor  of  Ephe- 
merides,  invited  him,  in  1780,  to  contribute  to  it,  and 
Pestalozzi  did  so  in  the  form  of  a  series  of  aphorisms  on 
life  and  education,  under  the  title  of  The  evening  hour 
of  a  hermit.  The  style  and  purpose  of  his  work  may 
be  judged  from  the  following  quotations  : — 

"  Pastors  and  teachers  of  the  nations,  know  you  man  ; 
is  it  with  you  a  matter  of  conscience  to  understand  his 
nature  and  his  destiny  ? 

"All  mankind  are  in  their  nature  alike,  they  have 
but  one  path  of  contentment.  The  natural  faculties  of 
each  one  are  to  be  perfected  into  pure  human  wisdom. 
This  general  education  of  man  must  serve  as  the  foun- 
dation to  every  education  of  a  particular  rank. 

"  The  faculties  grow  by  exercise. 

"The  intellectual  powers  of  children  must  not  be 
urged  on  to  remote  distances  before  they  have  acquired 
strength  by  exercise  in  things  near  them. 

"The  circle  of  knowledge  commences  close  round  a 
man  and  from  thence  stretches  out  concentrically. 

''  Real  knowledge  must  take  precedence  of  word-teach- 
ing and  mere  talk." 


THE  ORIGIN   OF   "LEONARD   AND   GERTRUDE".      53 

Twenty-one  years  later  he  was  able  to  say  of  these 
reflections :  "  Iselin's  Ephemerides  bear  witness  that 
the  dream  of  my  wishes  is  not  more  comprehensive  now 
than  it  was  when  at  that  time  I  sought  to  realise  it ". 

As  has  so  often  been  the  case  with  the  world's 
greatest  men,  the  want  of  bread-and-butter  has  called 
forth  their  very  souls  into  articulate  form.  Soon  the 
crown  and  glory  of  all  Pestalozzi's  writings  was  to  be 
produced — Leonard  mid  Gertrude,  a  Book  for  the  People. 
It  happened  that  in  1781  the  town's  watchmen  were  to 
be  put  into  uniform,  and  this  caused  a  good  deal  of 
discussion.  One  important  outcome  of  this  can  best 
be  given  in  Pestalozzi's  own  words  :  ^'  In  a  playful 
moment  I  put  together  a  short  composition  turning 
this  innovation  into  ridicule,  which  happened  to  be 
lying  on  Flissli's  [a  friendly  bookseller]  table  when  he 
was  talking  with  his  brother  the  painter  (who,  as  far  as 
I  know,  is  now  living  in  London  where  he  is  held  in 
great  esteem)  about  my  sad  fate,  and  lamenting  that  he 
knew  of  no  means  of  helping  me  out  of  my  present 
situation,  considering  the  sort  of  man  I  was,  and  the 
manner  in  which  I  acted.  Just  at  this  instant  the 
painter  took  up  the  squib  upon  the  transformation 
of  the  crooked,  dusty  and  uncombed  town-watchmen 
under  our  gates,  into  straight,  combed  and  trim  ones, 
read  it  through  several  times,  and  then  said  to  his 
brother  :  '  This  man  can  help  himself  to  any  extent  he 
pleases ;  he  has  talent  for  writing  in  a  style  which  at 
the  time  in  which  we  live  will  most  certainly  excite 
interest ;  encourage  him  to  do  so,  and  tell  him  from  me, 
that  he  can  most  certainly  help  himself  as  an  author, 
if  he  only  will '.  My  friend  sent  for  me  on  the  spot 
and  was  overjoyed  while  he  told  me  this,  and  added. 


54  PESTALOZZL 

*  I  cannot  conceive  at  all  how  it  was  possible  that  this 
should  not  have  struck  me '. 

''  I  felt  as  if  he  were  telling  me  a  dream.  In  the 
pressure  of  events  I  had  so  neglected  my  own  improve- 
ment that  I  could  scarcely  write  a  line  without  com- 
mitting grammatical  errors ;  and  in  spite  of  all  that 
Fiissli  said,  I  thought  myself  quite  incapable  of  such 
work.  But  necessity  which  is  so  often  said  to  be  a  bad 
counsellor  was  now  a  good  one  to  me.  Marmontel's 
Contes  moraux  were  lying  on  my  table  when  I  came 
home ;  I  immediately  took  them  up  and  asked  myself 
the  distinct  question,  whether  it  might  be  possible  for 
me  to  do  anything  of  the  kind,  and  after  I  had  read  a 
few  of  these  tales,  and  read  them  again,  it  appeared  to 
me  that,  after  all,  this  might  not  be  altogether  impos- 
sible. I  attempted  five  or  six  similar  little  stories,  of 
which  all  I  know  is  that  no  one  of  them  pleased  me  ; 
the  last  was  Leonard  and  Gertrude,  whose  history 
flowed  from  my  pen,  I  know  not  how,  and  developed 
itself  of  its  own  accord,  without  my  having  the  slightest 
plan  in  my  head,  and  even  without  my  thinking  of  one. 
In  a  few  weeks  the  book  stood  there,  without  my  know- 
ing exactly  how  I  had  done  it.  I  felt  its  value,  but 
only  as  a  man  in  his  sleep  feels  the  value  of  some  piece 
of  good  fortune  of  which  he  is  just  dreaming,  I  scarcely 
knew  that  I  was  awake,  and  yet  a  new  ray  of  hope 
began  to  dawn  upon  m.e,  when  I  thought  that  it  might 
be  possible  to  better  my  pecuniary  condition,  and  to 
make  it  more  supportable  to  my  family.  .  .  . 

"  He  [Recorder  Iselin  of  Basle,  whom  Pestalozzi  con- 
sulted] immediately  wrote  to  Decker  in  Berlin,  who 
paid  me  a  louisd'or  per  sheet,  but  promised  at  the  same 
time  that,  if  the  sale  of  the  work  should  render  a  second 


"LEONARD  AND  GERTRUDE."  55 

edition  necessary,  he  would  pay  me  the  same  again.  I 
was  unspeakably  satisfied.  A  louis  d'or  per  sheet  was 
to  me  much,  very  much,  in  the  circumstances  in  which 
I  then  was.  The  book  appeared,  and  excited  quite  a 
remarkable  degree  of  interest  in  my  own  country  and 
throughout  the  whole  of  Germany.  Nearly  all  the 
journals  spoke  in  its  praise,  and,  what  is  perhaps  still 
more,  nearly  all  the  almanacs  became  full  of  it ;  but  the 
most  unexpected  thing  to  me  was  that,  immediately 
after  its  appearance,  the  Agricultural  Society  of  Bern 
awarded  me  their  great  gold  medal,  with  a  letter  of 
thanks.  Pleased  as  I  was  with  the  medal,  and  glad  as 
I  should  have  been  to  keep  it,  I  was  nevertheless  obliged 
to  part  with  it  in  my  then  situation,  and  sold  it  some 
weeks  after  for  its  value  in  money  at  a  goldsmith's." 

In  the  preface  to  the  first  edition  he  writes:  "In 
that  which  I  here  rekte,  and  which  I  have  for  the  most 
part  seen  and  heard  myself  in  the  course  of  an  active 
life,  I  have  even  taken  care  not  once  to  add  my  own 
opinion  to  what  I  saw  and  heard  the  people  themselves 
feeling,  judging,  believing,  speaking  and  attempting". 
In  the  preface  to  the  second  edition  he  says  that  the 
object  of  the  book  was  "  to  bring  about  a  better  popular 
education,  based  upon  the  true  condition  of  the  people 
and  their  natural  relations.  It  was  my  first  word  to 
the  heart  of  the  poor  and  destitute  in  the  land  ...  to 
the  mothers  in  the  land,  and  to  the  heart  which  God 
gave  them,  to  be  to  theirs  what  no  one  on  earth  can  be 
in  their  stead." 

Briefly  the  story,  so  far  as  it  directly  concerns  educa- 
tion, is  as  follows :  In  the  village  of  Bonnal,  of  which 
Arner  is  lord  and  which  is  managed  by  his  unprincipled 
steward  Hummel,  live  Leonard  and  his  wife  Gertrude. 


56  PESTALOZZI. 

Leonard  is  a  man  of  weak  character,  easily  led  into 
wrong,  and  has  fallen  into  the  power  of  Hummel, 
through  borrowing  money  from  him.  Gertrude  is  "  the 
angel  in  the  house  " :  the  perfect  wife  and  mother,  the 
Good-Samaritan  neighbour,  and  the  complete  housewife. 
To  rescue  her  husband  from  the  clutches  of  the  steward 
Gertrude  goes  to  the  castle  to  see  Arner.  The  result  of 
her  visit  is  that  Leonard  is  commissioned  to  build  a 
church,  and  Hummel  becomes  suspect.  Then  follows 
a  conflict  between  the  influences  for  evil  and  for  good  in 
the  village ;  Arner  having  become,  through  Gertrude's 
influence  and  the  force  of  events,  the  champion  of  the 
good.  Though  many  good  deeds  are  done  by  Arner 
nothing  really  substantial  in  reform  takes  place  until  a 
spinner  named  Cotton  Meyer  suggests  to  Arner  that 
''after  all  we  can  do  very  little  with  the  people  unless 
the  next  generation  is  to  have  a  different  training  from 
that  our  schools  furnish.  Our  schools  ought  really  to 
stand  in  the  closest  connection  with  the  life  of  the  home, 
instead  of,  as  now,  in  strong  contradiction  to  it." 

Lieutenant  Gliilphi,  a  friend  and  helper  of  Arner, 
warmly  supports  this  view.  The  question  then  arises : 
how  is  such  a  school  to  be  set  up  in  Bonnal.  Cotton 
Meyer  says:  "  I  know  a  spinning- woman  in  the  village 
who  understands  it  far  better  than  I  ".  This  is  Gertrude 
who  trains  her  own  children  in  her  own  house.  Arner, 
Gliilphi  and  the  pastor  visit  Gertrude's  cottage  and 
watch  Gertrude  training  her  children.  The  result  is 
that  Gliilphi  resolves,  "  I  will  be  schoolmaster,"  and 
obtains  Gertrude's  promise  to  help  him ;  all  agreeing 
that  the  proper  education  of  the  young  is  the  only 
means  of  reforming  the  village.  Gliilphi  becomes  the 
village  schoolmaster  and,  after  he  has  overcome  great 


"LEONARD  AND  GERTRUDE."  57 

Opposition  from  the  parents  and  the  children,  his  work 
is  crowned  with  success  and  he  becomes  a  power  for 
good  in  the  village.  Thus  is  opened  a  new  era,  and  from 
this  time  forward  things  go  on  so  well  that  Bonnal  be- 
comes a  model  village,  and  a  commission  is  appointed 
from  the  ducal  court  to  report  on  the  possibility  of  a 
universal  application  of  the  principles  of  government  in 
the  village.  This  commission  was  constituted  on  these 
lines:  "to  ensure  thoroughness  there  must  be  among 
the  examiners  men  skilled  in  law  and  finance,  merchants, 
clergymen.  Government  officials,  schoolmasters  and 
physicians,  beside  women  of  different  ranks  and  condi- 
tions, who  shall  view  the  matter  with  their  woman's 
eyes,  and  be  sure  that  there  is  nothing  visionary  in  the 
background  ".  The  examiners,  after  six  days'  searching 
inspection,  unanimously  recommended  that  the  principles 
should  be  applied  universally. 

There  is  also  a  parallel  purpose  in  the  book :  the 
setting  forth  of  ways  and  means  of  social  and  economic 
reform.  The  terrible  evils  wrought  upon  the  persons 
and  characters  of  poor  people  by  tyrannical  and  un- 
principled officials — influenced  by  greed  of  gain  and  un- 
checked by  proper  supervision — are  exposed  with  un- 
flinching truth.  It  is  then  shown  how  an  intelligent 
and  right-minded  man,  with  power,  can  thwart  the 
designs  of  the  corrupter  and  the  corrupted,  and  en- 
courage those  who  desire  to  do  well,  by  personal  action 
and  wisely  planned  arrangements.  Indolence,  theft, 
and  the  abuse  of  charity  can  be  prevented ;  whilst  the 
love  of  ease,  pleasure  and  honour  can  be  rightly  directed. 
A  proper  use  of  religious  services  and  festivals,  and  the 
exposure  of  superstitions,  can  be  used  for  the  furthering 
of  enlightenment  amongst  the  people. 


58  PESTALOZZI. 

One  of  the  most  powerful  influences  for  good  will  be 
found  in  the  union  and  harmonious  action  of  all  classes. 
A  scheme  to  reaHse  this  in  Bonnal  is  outlined  : — (i)  A 
school  to  be  organised,  the  methods  in  which  are  to  be 
in  harmony  with  the  developing  influence  of  domestic 
life.  (2)  The  better  part  of  the  people  of  Bonnal  to 
join  with  those  of  the  castle  and  the  parsonage  in 
obtaining  a  real  and  active  influence  over  the  various 
households  in  the  village.  (3)  A  new  method  of 
choosing  overseers  (bailiffs)  to  be  adopted,  so  that  the 
evil  influence  of  bad  overseers  might  be  avoided. 
Further,  the  peasants  were  to  have  tithe-free  land  for 
those  of  their  children  who  saved  eight  or  ten  florins 
before  their  twentieth  year.  Thus  developed  through 
education :  a  share  in  their  local  government :  and 
security  of  property,  the  people  of  Bonnal  make  their 
place  a  model  village. 

The  book  has  many  passages  of  great  eloquence, 
exquisite  pathos,  manly  morahsing,  sparkling  wit,  dra- 
matic intensity,  riotous  humour,  fine  character  sketches, 
and  charming  incidents,  in  spite  of  its  want  of  plot  and 
great  diffuseness. 

Whilst  the  book  was  widely  and  eagerly  read  it 
failed  to  convey  to  the  masses  Pestalozzi's  own  moral — 
that  the  proper  education  of  the  young  is  the  foundation 
and  corner-stone  of  true  reform.  Most  of  those  who 
read  the  book  desired  only  to  be  interested  and  amused, 
and  seemed  to  think  that  it  showed  that  all  the  poverty 
and  depravity  among  the  common  people  resulted  from 
the  dishonesty  and  greed  of  village  oflicials  ;  and  that  it 
only  needed  mothers  like  Gertrude,  schoolmasters  like 
Gliilphi,  and  lords  like  Arner  to  put  such  matters  right. 
Festalozzi  realised  that  his  readers  missed  his  point  and, 


"CHRISTOPHER   AND   ELIZA."  59 

to  remedy  this,  he  wrote  another  book  :  Christopher  and 
Eliza,  my  second  book  for  the  people,  in  1782.  In  a  later 
edition  of  it  he  says  in  the  preface  :  "  I  made  a  peasant 
family  read  together  Leonard  and  Gertrude,  and  say 
things  about  the  story  of  that  work,  and  the  persons 
introduced  in  it,  which  I  thought  might  not  occur  of 
themselves  to  everybody's  mind  ".  The  book  consists 
of  thirty  dialogues  in  which  Christopher,  an  intelligent 
farmer,  discusses  with  his  family  and  head  servant  the 
history  of  Bonnal,  chapter  by  chapter.  This  also  failed 
of  its  purpose  so  far  as  the  poor  themselves  were  con- 
cerned. He  then  continued  Leonard  and  Gertrude,  in 
three  more  volumes  which  appeared  in  1783,  1785  and 
1787  respectively. 

But  those  of  great  minds  and  large  hearts,  those  in 
high  places  who  sought  the  welfare  of  the  many,  under- 
stood, appreciated  and  sympathised  with  the  purpose  of 
the  book.  Henning  says  that  it  was  translated  into 
Danish  ;  and  that  the  nobles — amongst  others  the  Coun- 
tess Schimmelman — were  so  much  impressed  and  in- 
fluenced by  the  reading  of  it  that  they  took  steps  to 
improve  the  condition  of  the  peasantry  on  their  own 
estates.  Count  Zinzendorf,  the  Austrian  Minister  of 
Finance,  consulted  Pestalozzi  as  to  educational  legisla- 
tion based  on  the  ideas  set  forth  in  the  book. 

Perhaps  the  greatest  individual  triumph  of  this  work 
was  its  influence  on  Fellenberg,  who  says  :  "  The  book 
made  a  deep  impression  on  me,  and  each  time  I  read  it 
I  was  more  and  more  convinced  of  its  truth,  and  it  was 
in  a  burst  of  deep  feeling  caused  by  the  reading  of  it 
that  I  vowed  to  my  mother  that  I  would  devote  my  life 
to  the  poor  and  forsaken  children  ".  Thus  arose  another 
great  Swiss  reformer, 


60  PESTALOZZI. 

On  the  advice  of  Iselin,  Pestalozzi  started  a  weekly 
newspaper,  called  the  Swiss  News,  in  1782.  In  this  he 
strove  to  make  his  views  more  widely  known  and  better 
understood.  His  chief  purpose  was  to  show  how 
education  was  the  best  means  for  dealing  with  the 
deepest  elements  of  the  national  life,  so  as  to  secure  its 
highest  welfare  and  cure  its  worst  diseases.  He  writes  : 
"  Governors  and  instructors  have  only  to  direct  the 
progress  of  the  enlightenments  and  the  enjoyments  of 
the  time,  with  all  the  power  and  with  all  the  wisdom 
they  possess,  in  order  that  the  people  may  lose  nothing 
that  is  still  good,  may  thoroughly  understand  what  they 
ought  to  do,  and  willingly  do  that  which  brings  them  a 
livelihood  ".  Again  :  "  Human  morality  is  nothing  more 
than  that  which  results  from  the  development  of  the 
first  feelings  of  love  and  gratitude  which  the  nursling 
experiences  ". 

As  to  the  beginnings  of  education,  he  writes:  '*The 
first  development  of  the  child's  powers  ought  to  come 
from  his  participation  in  the  work  of  the  paternal  house  ; 
for  this  work  is,  necessarily,  that  which  the  father  and 
mother  best  understand,  that  which  most  engages  their 
attention,  and  that  which  they  are  best  able  to  teach  ". 
In  a  very  characteristic  passage — half  rhapsody  and  half 
reason — he  says,  in  one  number  :  "  Summer  day  !  teach 
to  this  worm  who  crawls  upon  the  earth  that  the  fruits 
of  life  develop  in  the  midst  of  the  fires  and  storms  of 
our  globe ;  but  that  to  ripen  they  need  the  gentle  rains, 
the  glistening  dew,  and  the  refreshing  rest  of  night. 
Teach  me,  summer  day,  that  man,  formed  of  the  dust 
of  the  ground,  grows  and  ripens  like  a  plant  rooted  in 
the  soil." 

Essays  are  given  on  such  subjects  as :  the  abuse  of 


"ILLUSTRATIONS   OF   MY  A   B   C   BOOK."  6 1 

legal  forms  for  defeating  the  ends  of  justice;  one  law 
for  the  rich  and  another  for  the  poor  ;  the  hypocrisy  of 
liberal  sentiments  among  the  privileged  classes  and 
their  indifference  to  the  real  sufferings  of  the  poor  ; 
domestic  economy  among  the  lower  classes ;  the  in- 
fluence of  different  occupations  on  the  character  of  the 
people ;  the  state  of  the  peasantry  and  of  the  manufac- 
turing classes  ;  the  best  interest  of  landed  proprietors ; 
parochial  administration  ;  the  corruption  of  high  life ; 
the  destructive  effects  of  quackery  and  superstition  ; 
the  moral  improvement  of  criminals ;  the  defects  of 
charity  schools ;  the  duty  of  society  to  secure  to  every 
individual  the  means  of  gaining  an  honest  livelihood ; 
medical  police  ;  and  so  on. 

In  this  periodical  he  published  a  series  of  allegorical 
tales,  under  the  somewhat  fanciful  title  of  Illustrations 
to  my  A  B  C  Book,  or  to  the  Elements  of  my  Philosophy. 
The  deep  insight  and  searching  irony — in  relation  to  the 
political  and  social  conditions  in  the  country  (see  pp.  3-9) 
— in  them  may  be  seen  in  the  following  selections : — 

*'  The  Flame  and  the  Tallow. 

"  '  I  am  always  ashamed  to  see  myself  so  near  to  you,' 
said  the  flame  to  the  tallow. 

'*  The  tallow  answered  :  '  I  thought  you  were  ashamed 
of  losing  me,  because  then  you  always  disappear '. 

"  '  FooHsh  grease,'  replied  the  flame,  '  it  is  true  that  I 
shine  only  so  long  as  I  live  upon  you,  but  I  am  ashamed 
of  letting  it  be  known.'  " 

**  The  Oak  and  the  Grass. 

"  One  morning  the  grass  said  to  the  oak,  under  whose 
branches  it  grew :  '  I  should  get  on  much  better  in  the 


62  PESTALOZZI. 

Open  than  under  your  shelter'.  '  You  are  very  ungrate- 
ful,' replied  the  oak,  '  not  to  acknowledge  the  blessing, 
which  you  enjoy,  of  being  protected  from  the  frost  in 
winter  by  the  leaves  from  my  autumn  sheddings,  with 
which  I  cover  you.' 

"  But  the  grass  answered  :  '  You  deprive  me,  with  your 
branches,  of  my  share  of  sun,  dew  and  rain ;  and  with 
your  roots  my  portion  of  nourishment  from  the  ground  ; 
boast  not  therefore  of  the  forced  benevolence  of  your 
foliage,  with  which  you  foster  your  own  growth  rather 
than  prevent  my  decay '." 

"  The  Privilege  of  the  Fishes. 

"  The  fishes  in  a  pond  complained  that  they  were, 
more  than  their  neighbours  in  other  ponds,  persecuted 
by  the  pikes.  Thereupon  an  old  pike,  who  was  the 
judge  of  the  pond,  pronounced  this  sentence  :  *  That  the 
defendants,  to  make  amends,  shall  in  future  permit, 
every  year,  two  common  fishes  to  become  pikes '." 

"  Equality. 

"  A  dwarf  said  to  a  giant :  '  We  have  equal  rights !  ' 
'  Very  true,  my  good  friend ;  but  you  cannot  walk  in  my 
shoes,'  replied  the  giant." 

By  calling  these  fables  '*  Illustrations  of  my  A  B  C," 
i.e.,  Leonard  and  Gertrude,  Pestalozzi  intended  to  draw 
attention  to  the  fact  that  they  were  yet  another  attempt 
to  make  clear  "  the  elements  of  my  philosophy,"  i.e.,  the 
moral  regeneration  of  the  race,  through  education,  as  the 
only  means  to  human  happiness. 

These  writings  show  very  clearly  what  was  the  real 
basis  of  Pestalozzi's  work,  viz.,  national  regeneration 
through    education    aiming  at   the   highest    individual 


"  INVESTIGATIONS  INTO  THE  COURSE  OF  NATURE."      6$ 

development  ;  and  how  his  own  mind  was  developing  in 
his  efforts  to  set  forth  his  new  gospel  of  social  salvation. 
Ashe  once  said  to  Mrs.  Niederer:  "It  is  only  by  en- 
nobling men  that  we  can  put  an  end  to  the  misery  and 
ferment  of  the  people  ;  and  also  to  the  abuses  of  des- 
potism, whether  it  be  of  princes  or  whether  it  be  of 
mobs  ". 

The  Swiss  News  lasted  for  only  twelve  months,  and 
its  value  was  for  posterity  rather  than  for  its  own  times. 
In  its  essays,  short  moral  stories,  dialogues,  fables  and 
verse  are  enshrined  some  of  the  most  striking  evidences 
of  Pestalozzi's  genius :  his  originality,  depth,  fulness 
and  independence  of  thought — untinged  and  unhampered 
by  any  outside  influence  whatsoever — being  seen  at  their 
best. 

In  1787  he  published  the  fourth  volume  of  his  Leonard 
and  Gertrude ;  and  again  took  up  farming. 

In  1797  appeared  his  Investigations  into  the  Course  of 
N attire  in  the  Development  of  the  Human  Race.  This  was 
an  attempt  to  find  a  philosophical  basis  for  his  views, 
and  was  undertaken  at  the  suggestion  of  the  great 
German  philosopher  FicKte.  The  following  is  a  short 
outline  of  the  plan  and  purpose  of  the  book.  He  pro- 
poses, at  the  outset,  to  answer  the  following  ques- 
tions : — 

"  What  am  I  ?  what  is  the  hi>.fnan  species  ? 

' '  What  have  I  done  ?  what  is  thd'^human  species  doing  ? 

''What  has  the  course  of  my  life,  such  as  it  has 
been,  made  of  me  ;  and  what  has  the  '^course  of  life,  such 
as  it  has  been,  made  of  the  human  species  ? 

"On  what  ground  do  my  volition  and  my  opinions 
rest,  and  must  they  rest,  under  the  circumstances  in 
which  I  am  placed  ? 


64  PESTALOZZI. 

"On  what  ground  do  the  voHtions  of  the  human 
species,  and  its  opinions,  rest,  and  must  rest,  under  the 
circumstances  in  which  it  is  placed  ?  " 

To  find  an  answer  to  these  questions  he  reviews  the 
*'  march  of  civilisation,"  and  finds  that : — 

"  By  the  helplessness  of  his  animal  condition  man  is 
brought  to  knowledge. 

"  Knowledge  leads  to  acquisition,  acquisition  to  pos- 
session. Possession  leads  to  the  formation  of  society. 
Society  leads  to  powers  and  honours.  Powers  and 
honours  lead  to  the  relations  of  rulers  and  subjects, 
i.e.,  relations  of  nobles  and  commons  to  the  crown. 

''  All  these  relations  call  for  a  state  of  law.  The  state 
of  law  calls  for  civil  liberty.  The  want  of  law  entails 
tyranny  and  slavery. 

"  Following  the  course  of  nature  in  another  direction, 
I  find  in  myself  a  certain  benevolence,  by  which  acquisi- 
tion, honour,  property  and  power  ennoble  my  mind, 
whilst  without  it  all  these  privileges  of  my  social  con- 
dition only  tend  to  degrade  me  more  deeply." 

In  other  words,  the  race  has  developed  through  three 
great  stages,  viz.,  (i)  an  original,  instinctive,  innocent, 
animal  state  of  nature.  In  this  condition  man  is  the 
creature  and  the  victim  of  circumstances ;  "  his  hands 
are  ever  stained  with  the  blood  of  his  brother ;  like  a 
tiger  he  defends  his  den,  and  roars  against  his  own 
species ;  he  claims  the  ends  of  the  earth  as  his  own  ; 
and  perpetrates  whatever  he  chooses  under  the  sun," 
i.e.,  there  are  no  laws  except  those  of  self-preservation 
and  no  morals  save  his  own  satisfactions.  But  the 
hardships  of  such  a  life  lead  him  to  desire,  and  then  to 
seek,  better  conditions.  Hence  conflict  with  his  fellows 
is  changed  for  co-operation  with  them. 


"  INVESTIGATIONS  INTO  THE  COURSE  OF  NATURE."     6$ 

Now  arises  (2)  the  social  state.  Co-operation  leads 
to  greater  achievements  and  more  enjoyments.  Speech 
and  knowledge  are  greatly  developed,  and  thus  man  the 
brute  becomes  man  the  human.  But  with  this  come 
rights  and  duties,  for  we  can  only  get  much  by  giving 
much.  Now,  therefore,  come  powers  and  honours,  for 
''when  hundreds  and  thousands  are  gathered  together 
[man]  is  compelled,  in  spite  of  himself,  to  say  to  the 
strong,  '  Be  thou  my  shield  ' ;  and  to  the  cunning,  *  Be 
thou  my  guide ' ;  and  to  the  rich,  '  Be  thou  my  pre- 
server '  ".  Such  honours  and  powers  are  in  themselves 
indispensably  connected  with  the  development  of  our 
species ;  and  only  when  abused  by  unfaithful  and 
criminal  persons  do  they  corrupt  and  degrade  the  race. 

After  all,  however,  "  the  relation  of  man  to  man  in 
the  social  state  is  merely  animal  .  .  .  there  is  nothing 
he  contemplates  less  than  the  service  of  God  and  the 
love  due  to  his  neighbour.  He  enters  society  with  a 
view  to  gratify  himself,  and  to  enjoy  all  those  things 
which,  to  a  sensual  and  animal  being,  are  the  indispens- 
able conditions  of  satisfaction  and  happiness.  The 
social  law  is,  therefore,  not  in  any  wise  a  moral  law, 
but  a  mere  modification  of  the  animal  law." 

Man  must,  therefore,  raise  himself  out  of  the  social 
state — or  he  will  ever  be  liable  to,  and  suffer  from,  the 
dangers  of  it — into  (3)  the  moral  state.  It  is  only  the 
moral  will — ''the  force  of  which  he  opposes  to  the 
force  of  his  nature  " — that  can  save  man.  He  finds 
within  himself  an  element  called  benevolence,  and  a 
power  called  love,  which  will  ennoble  the  very  root  of 
benevolence — even  though  this  is  essentially  animal  in 
its  origin.  "  But  there  is  a  danger  still  of  love  being 
lost  in  my  longing  for  self-gratification ;  I  feel  desolate 

5 


66  PESTALOZZI. 

as  an  orphan,  and  I  seek  to  rise  beyond  the  power  of 
imagination,  beyond  the  limits  of  all  research  and 
knowledge  that  is  possible  here  below,  to  the  fountain- 
head  of  my  existence,  to  derive  from  thence  help  against 
the  desolation  of  my  being,  against  all  the  ills  and 
weaknesses  of  my  nature." 

Therefore  a  man  "will  fear  God  in  order  that  the 
animal  instincts  of  his  nature  shall  not  degrade  him  in 
his  inmost  soul.  He  feels  what  he  can  do  in  this  re- 
spect, and  then  he  makes  what  he  can  do  the  law  of 
what  he  ought  to  do.  Subjected  to  this  law,  which  he 
imposes  upon  himself,  he  is  distinguished  above  all 
other  creatures  with  which  we  are  acquainted."  This  is 
the  moral  man :  the  man  who  desires  to  be  higher, 
nobler  and  better  than  he  is,  and  makes  every  en- 
deavour to  raise  himself  by  working  upon  his  own 
character.  Only  when  a  society  is  composed  of  such 
men  can  it  be  a  really  beneficent,  prosperous  and 
happy  one. 

The  animal  man  is  as  nature  makes  him ;  the  social 
man  is  the  product  of  the  social  organisation  in  which 
he  happens  to  be ;  but  the  moral  man  is  the  outcome 
of  his  own  efforts — he  is,  in  a  sense,  his  own  creator. 
"  Morality  is  quite  an  individual  matter.  .  .  .  No  man 
can  feel  for  me  that  I  am.  No  man  can  feel  for  me 
that  I  am  moral."  The  religion  of  the  animal  man 
is  idolatry,  because  he  is  a  slave  to  his  senses  and 
the  creature  of  his  fears.  The  religion  of  social  man 
is  deceit,  because  society  fosters  ambition,  pride  and 
inequality;  and  man  strives,  by  every  means,  for 
place  and  power — endeavours  to  get  all  he  can  for 
himself  at  the  expense  of  others.  The  religion  of  the 
moral  man  is  truth^  for  this  is  the  foundation  of  his 


"INVESTIGATIONS  INTO  THE  COURSE  OF  NATURE."      6/ 

life  and  the  only  means  by  which  he  can  carry  out  the 
self-improvement  for  which  he  lives.  A  man  must 
possess  himself — and  this  the  truly  moral  man  does — 
before  he  can  really  possess  anything  else.  Then  is  he 
of  real  worth  to  himself,  his  family  and  the  community, 
for  he  is  no  longer  subject  to  his  animal  instincts  or  the 
prejudices  of  society. 

It  is  only  fair  to  the  reader  to  point  out  that  the 
above  summary  is  an  attempt  to  make  clear  what 
Pestalozzi  seems  to  have  meant.  All  his  critics  are 
agreed  that  there  is  much  that  is  wordy  and  obscure  in 
the  work  ;  but  none  the  less,  there  is  much  that  is  fine 
in  substance  and  in  form.  From  the  rational  point  of  view 
it  suffers  seriously  from  the  fact  that  it  is — like  Rousseau's 
works — speculative  and  fanciful  rather  than  scientific 
and  exact,  but  this  does  not  make  it  either  valueless 
or  entirely  wrong.  That  the  views  set  forth  in  the  book 
really  underlaid  and  influenced  Pestalozzi's  methods, 
is  clear  from  his  other  writings,  and  is,  perhaps,  best 
shown  in  his  Letters  on  Infants'  Education — one  of  the 
simplest,  clearest  and  most  interesting  of  his  writ- 
ings on  education,  and  the  last  and  most  neglected 
of  them.  His  own  criticism  on  the  Investigations  is  : 
"This  book  is  to  me  only  another  proof  of  my  lack  of 
ability ;  it  is  simply  a  diversion  of  my  imaginative 
faculty,  a  work  relatively  weak.  .  .  .  No  one  under- 
stands me,  and  it  has  been  hinted  that  the  whole  work 
has  been  taken  for  nonsense." 

But  to  Pestalozzi  all  this  meant  much — he  found 
himself,  both  intellectually  and  practically.  He  says : 
"  I  was  grey  haired,  yet  still  a  child,  but  a  child  deeply 
disturbed  within  himself  Still  in  all  these  troublous 
times  I  moved  forwards  to  the  purpose  of  my  life  ;  but 

5* 


68  PESTALOZZI. 

my  way  was  more  unbalanced  and  erring  than  ever. 
I  now  sought  a  path  to  my  end.  .  .  .  They  [those  who 
despised  him]  restored  me  to  myself  and  left  me  .  .  . 
nothing  but  the  word  which  I  spoke  in  the  first  days  of 
that  overthrow,  *  /  will  turn  schoolmaster  '." 

After  the  publication  of  the  Investigations  follow  ten 
years  of  silence  so  far  as  concerns  Pestalozzi's  pen. 
But  meantime  great  events  were  happening  in  Switzer- 
land. The  political  teaching  of  Rousseau  and  others 
was  finding  expression  in  revolutionary  reform.  Pesta- 
lozzi  was  a  democrat  of  the  democrats  and  used  his 
pen  on  the  side  of  the  people.  The  national  govern- 
ment had  been  put  into  the  hands  of  five  men,  who 
formed  the  *' Executive  Directory".  These  were  only 
too  glad  to  make  use  of  the  services  of  the  author  of 
Leonard  and  Gertrude,  and  they  made  him  editor  of  a 
journal  designed  to  spread  the  knowledge  of  revolution- 
ary principles. 

The  title  of  the  paper  was  to  be  the  Popular  Swiss 
News  :  it  was  to  be  issued  once  a  week  ;  and  to  be 
sent  free  to  schoolmasters,  clergymen  and  all  Govern- 
ment officials,  who  received  orders  to  read  it  and  to 
explain  its  contents  to  others.  It  was  an  entirely 
official  paper,  published  by  the  Directory  at  the  request 
of  the  Great  Council;  and  its  programme  was  to 
inform  the  people  as  to  the  changes  of  Government : 
spread  general  enlightenment :  and  rally  the  people  to 
the  support  of  the  united  Government.  The  first 
number  appeared  on  8th  September,  1798. 

But  Pestalozzi  had  already  offered  his  services  for 
other  work,  nearer  and  dearer  to  his  heart.  On  21st 
May,  1798,  he  sent  this  letter  to  the  Minister  of 
Justice : — 


PUBLIC  RECOGNITION.  69 

*'  Citizen  Minister, 

"  Convinced  that  the  country  is  in  urgent 
need  of  some  improvement  in  the  education  and  schools 
of  the  people,  and  feeling  certain  that  three  or  four 
months'  experience  would  produce  the  most  important 
results,  I  address  myself,  in  the  absence  of  Citizen 
Minister  Stapfer,  to  Citizen  Minister  Meyer,  to  offer 
through  him  my  services  to  the  country,  and  to  beg 
him  to  take  the  necessary  steps  with  the  Directory 
for  the  carrying  out  of  my  patriotic  purposes. 
*'With  republican  greeting, 

"  Pestalozzi." 

Thus  ends  another  epoch  of  Pestalozzi's  life  ;  a  pe- 
riod which  must  have  been  filled  with  many  an  agony 
of  despondency,  despair  and  deprivation,  only  partly 
expressed  by  his  statement  in  a  letter  to  M.  Zschokke. 
"  Do  you  know  that  I  have  wanted  the  bare  necessities  ? 
Do  you  know  that  until  now  I  have  kept  out  of  society, 
away  from  church,  because  I  had  neither  clothes  nor 
money  to  buy  them  ?  O  Zschokke,  do  you  know  that 
I  am  the  laughing-stock  of  the  passers-by  because  I 
look  like  a  beggar  ?  Do  you  know  that  ?  More  than 
a  thousand  times  I  was  obliged  to  go  without  dinner, 
and  at  noon,  when  even  the  poorest  were  seated  around 
a  table,  I  devoured  a  morsel  of  bread  upon  the  high- 
way .  .  .  and  all  this  that  I  might  minister  to  the  needs 
of  the  poor,  by  the  realisation  of  my  principles." 

Yet,  happily,  even  in  these  dark  times  there  were  bursts 
of  glorious  sunshine.  His  writings  had  made  him,  to 
a  certain  extent,  famous.  He  visited  Germany  and  be- 
came acquainted  with  Goethe,  Wieland,  Herder,  Fichte 
and  other  great  men,  in  1792 ;  and  in  the  same  year  he 


70  PESTALOZZI. 

was  declared  a  "  Citizen  of  the  French  RepubHc,"  in 
company  with  such  men  as  Bentham,  Tom  Payne, 
Wilberforce,  Clarkson,  Washington,  Madison,  Klop- 
stock,  Kozciusko,  etc.  Karl  von  Bonstetten  asked 
Pestalozzi  to  live  with  him  on  his  estate  in  Italian 
Switzerland  ;  the  Austrian  Minister  of  Finance,  Count 
Zinzendorf,  wished  to  have  him  in  his  neighbourhood  ; 
and  the  Grand  Duke  of  Tuscany  desired  to  give  him  an 
appointment. 


CHAPTER  V. 

STANZ  AND  BURGDORF— "  I  WILL  TURN  SCHOOLMASTER." 

One  of  the  five  Swiss  Directors  was  Le  Grand,  who 
had  been  the  friend  and  helper  of  Pastor  Oberlin  in  his 
great  educational  work  in  the  Ban  de  la  Roche,  and  he 
was  only  too  pleased  to  take  Pestalozzi  at  his  word. 
Arrangements  were  being  made  for  Pestalozzi  to  open  a 
school  in  the  canton  of  Argovie  when  war  put  an  end  to 
the  project.  But  though  the  war  closed  one  opening 
it  created  another.  On  the  gth  of  September,  1798, 
the  town  of  Stanz  was  burnt  by  the  French,  and  the 
people  put  to  the  sword  with  the  greatest  ferocity. 
Crowds  of  fatherless  and  motherless  children  wandered 
about  destitute  and  homeless.  Le  Grand  called  upon 
Pestalozzi  to  go  to  the  rescue  of  the  orphans  at  Stanz. 
He  gladly  went. 

The  regulations  and  aim  of  the  institution — a  poor- 
house— to  be  established  are  set  forth  in  the  decree 
issued  by  the  Directory  on  the  5th  of  December,  1798. 
They  are  :  "  (i)  The  immediate  control  of  the  poor- 
house  at  Stanz  is  entrusted  to  Citizen  Pestalozzi.  (2) 
Children  of  both  sexes,  taken  from  among  the  poorest, 
and  specially  from  the  orphans  in  the  Stanz  district, 
will  be  received  in  it  and  brought  up  free  of  charge.  (3) 
Children  will  not  be  received    under  the  age  of    five 

71 


72  PESTALOZZI. 

years ;  they  will  remain  till  they  are  fit  to  go  into 
service,  or  to  learn  such  a  trade  as  cannot  be  taught  to 
them  in  the  institution. 

''(4)  The  poor-house  will  be  conducted  with  all  the 
care  and  economy  that  befits  such  an  institution.  It 
will  be  the  rule  that  children  shall  be  gradually  led  to 
take  part  in  all  the  work  necessary  for  the  carrying  on 
and  support  of  the  establishment.  The  time  of  the 
pupils  will  be  divided  between  work  in  the  fields,  the 
house  and  the  schoolroom.  An  endeavour  will  be  made 
to  develop  in  the  pupils  as  much  skill,  and  as  many 
useful  powers,  as  the  funds  of  the  institution  will 
permit.  So  far  as  it  is  possible  to  do  so  without  en- 
dangering the  industrial  ends  which  are  to  be  aimed 
at,  a  few  lessons  will  be  given  during  the  manual 
work. 

"(5)  All  the  out-buildings  of  the  women's  convent  at 
Stanz  are  to  be  given  up  to  the  work  of  the  institution, 
and  also  a  sufiicient  portion  of  the  adjoining  meadow- 
land.  The  buildings  will  at  once  be  repaired  and  fitted 
up  for  the  accommodation  of  eighty  pupils,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  plans  drawn  up  by  Citizen  Schmid,  of 
Lucerne.  (6)  For  the  founding  of  the  asylum  the 
Minister  of  the  Interior  will,  once  for  all,  place  a  sum  of 
two  hundred  and  forty  pounds  at  the  disposal  of  the 
Committee  of  the  Poor  "  [Pestalozzi ;  Truttman,  the 
sub-prefect  of  Arth  ;  and  Businger,  the  parish-priest  of 
Stanz].  This  decree  was  based  upon  a  plan  drawn  up 
by  Pestalozzi,  and  warmly  approved  by  Stapfer,  Reng- 
ger  and  Le  Grand. 

The  actual  plan  of  work  is  given  by  Pestalozzi  in  a 
letter  to  Rengger:  *'  The  hours  of  work  and  study  are 
now  fixed  as  follows :  from  six  to  eight,  lessons ;  then 


THE  STANZ  ORPHANS'  SCHOOL.         73 

manual  work  till  four  in  the  afternoon ;  then  lessons 
again  till  eight  ".  This  letter  was  written  on  the  igth 
April,  1799. 

A  very  real  interest  was  taken  by  Government  in 
the  institution,  as  is  shown  by  the  frequent  reports  con- 
cerning it,  and  by  the  fact  that  on  the  24th  of  May, 
1799,  Pestalozzi  took  all  his  children  to  Lucerne,  where 
they  were  welcomed  by  the  members  of  the  Executive 
Directory.  On  this  occasion  each  child  received  a 
silver  coin  as  a  present. 

While  the  convent  was  being  built  and  as  soon  as  a 
single  room  could  be  made  use  of,  Pestalozzi  received 
forty  children — very  soon  after  increased  to  eighty — 
and  began  his  work.  This  was  in  January,  1799,  in  a 
time  of  severe  cold.  Here,  in  this  one  room  in  which 
master  and  pupils  had  to  live  both  by  day  and  night, 
was  made  an  experiment  in  practical  education  the 
history  of  which  will,  probably,  never  die.  For  five 
months  Pestalozzi  worked  like  any  slave  and  nearly 
killed  himself  by  overwork.  He  was  almost  without 
help :  *'  I  opened  the  establishment  with  no  other 
helper  than  a  woman-servant ".  Nothing  was  pre- 
pared for  the  children :  "  Neither  kitchen,  rooms,  nor 
beds  were  ready  to  receive  them.  At  first  this  was  a 
source  of  incredible  trouble.  For  the  first  few  weeks  I 
was  shut  up  in  a  very  small  room ;  the  weather  was 
bad,  and  the  alterations,  which  made  a  great  dust  and 
filled  the  corridors  with  rubbish,  rendered  the  air  very 
unhealthy.  The  want  of  beds  compelled  me  at  first  to 
send  some  of  the  poor  children  home  at  night ;  and  they 
came  back  next  day  covered  with  vermin. 

"  Most  of  them  on  their  arrival  were  very  degenerated 
specimens  of  humanity.     Many  of  them  had  a  sort  of 


74  PESTALOZZI. 

chronic  skin-disease,  which  almost  prevented  their  walk- 
ing ;  or  sores  on  their  heads,  or  rags  full  of  vermin  ;  many 
were  almost  skeletons  with  haggard,  careworn  faces 
and  foreheads  wrinkled  with  distrust  and  dread ;  some 
brazen,  accustomed  to  begging,  hypocrisy,  and  all  sorts 
of  deceit ;  others  broken  by  misfortune,  patient,  but 
suspicious,  timid,  and  entirely  devoid  of  affection.  There 
were  some  spoilt  children  amongst  them  who  had  known 
the  sweets  of  comfort ;  these  were  full  of  pretensions. 
They  kept  to  themselves,  regarding  with  disdain  the 
little  beggars  who  had  become  their  comrades ;  tolerat- 
ing this  equality ;  and  quite  unable  to  adapt  themselves 
to  the  ways  of  the  house,  which  differed  too  much  from 
their  old  habits. 

"  But  what  was  common  to  them  all  was  a  persistent 
idleness,  resulting  from  the  want  of  any  exercise  of  their 
bodily  powers  and  the  faculties  of  their  intelligence. 
Out  of  every  ten  children  there  was  hardly  one  who 
knew  his  ABC;  as  for  any  other  knowledge,  it  was,  of 
course,  out  of  the  question.  .  .  . 

"  I  was  alone  with  them  from  morning  till  night.  It 
was  from  my  hand  that  they  received  all  that  could  do 
good  to  their  souls  and  bodies.  All  needful  help,  con- 
solation and  instruction  they  received  directly  from 
me.  .  .  .  We  shared  our  food  and  drink. ...  I  was  with 
them  when  they  were  strong  and  by  their  side  when 
they  were  ill.  I  slept  in  their  midst.  I  was  the  last  to 
go  to  bed  and  the  first  to  get  up.  When  we  retired  to 
bed  I  prayed  with  them,  and,  at  their  own  request, 
taught  them  till  they  fell  asleep.  Their  clothes  and 
bodies  were  intolerably  filthy,  but  I  looked  after  both 
myself,  and  was  thus  constantly  exposed  to  the  risk  of 
contagion." 


THE  STANZ  ORPHANS'  SCHOOL.        ^5 

Although  sickness  broke  out  amongst  them,  "  on  the 
return  of  spring  it  was  evident  to  everybody  that  the 
children  were  doing  well,  growing  rapidly,  and  gaining 
colour.  Certain  magistrates  and  ecclesiastics,  who  saw 
them  some  time  afterwards,  stated  that  they  had  im- 
proved almost  beyond  recognition."  But,  better  still : 
*'  I  witnessed  the  growth  of  an  inward  strength  in  my 
children,  which,  in  its  general  development  far  surpassed 
my  expectations,  and  in  its  particular  manifestations  not 
only  often  surprised  me,  but  touched  me  deeply.  .  .  .  My 
children  soon  became  more  open,  more  contented  and 
more  susceptible  to  every  good  and  noble  influence  than 
any  one  could  possibly  have  foreseen  when  they  first 
came  to  me,  so  devoid  were  they  of  ideas,  good  feelings 
and  moral  principles.  ...  I  had  incomparably  less 
trouble  to  develop  those  children  whose  minds  were  still 
blank,  than  those  who  had  already  acquired  inaccurate 
ideas.  .  .  .  My  pupils  developed  rapidly ;  it  was  another 
race.  .  .  .  The  children  very  soon  felt  that  there  existed 
in  them  forces  which  they  did  not  know,  and  in  par- 
ticular they  acquired  a  general  sentiment  of  order  and 
beauty.  They  were  self-conscious,  and  the  impression 
of  weariness  which  habitually  reigns  in  schools  vanished 
like  a  shadow  from  my  classroom.  They  willed,  they 
had  power,  they  persevered,  they  succeeded,  and  they 
were  happy." 

The  kind  of  children  with  which  Pestalozzi  had  to 
deal  is  shown  in  his  report  on  them  to  the  Directory  ; 
e.g.,  "  Jacob  Baggenstoss,  fifteen,  of  Stanzstad :  father 
dead,  mother  living :  good  health,  small  capacity ;  can 
do  nothing  more  than  spin  cotton :  accustomed  to 
begging.  .  .  .  Gaspard  Joseph  Waser,  eleven,  of  Stanz- 
stad  :  father  living,  mother  dead  :  healthy,  and  of  good 


y6  PESTALOZZI. 

abilities,  rough  detestable  habits:  does  not  know  his 
ABC:  cannot  spin :  accustomed  to  begging.  .  .  . 
Mathias  Odermatt,  eight,  of  Stanz :  father  killed,  mother 
living  :  deformed  and  sickly,  weak  and  idle  :  knows  noth- 
ing; poor.  .  .  .  Anna  Josephine  Amstad,  fifteen,  of  Stanz: 
father  dead,  mother  living :  healthy,  ordinary  ability  : 
can  read  a  little :  can  spin :  extremely  poor.  .  .  .  Cather- 
ine Aieer,  five,  of  Stanz :  father  killed,  mother  living : 
healthy,  very  good  abilities:  knows  nothing:  poor." 

His  success  with  his  pupils  is  testified  by  Truttman 
and  Businger  in  their  reports  to  the  Directory.  The 
former  says  :  "  The  poor-house  is  doing  well.  Father 
Pestalozzi  works  persistently  night  and  day.  There  are 
now  sixty-two  children  who  are  boarded  and  employed 
all  day  in  the  establishment,  though  only  fifty  can  stay 
at  night,  owing  to  insufficient  beds.  It  is  amazing  to 
see  all  that  this  excellent  man  does  and  what  great 
progress  his  pupils  have  made  in  so  short  a  time.  They 
are  now  eager  for  instruction."  Businger  says  :  *'  The 
poor-house  has  started,  and  is  going  on  well.  Over 
seventy  children  have  already  been  received,  and  every 
day  brings  more  applicants  for  admission.  Citizen 
Pestalozzi  works  unceasingly  for  the  progress  of  the 
institution,  and  it  is  difficult  to  believe  one's  eyes  and 
ears  when  one  sees  and  hears  all  that  his  work  has 
performed  in  so  short  a  time."  These  reports,  be  it 
noted,  were  written  the  first  on  nth  February,  1799, 
and  the  second  in  the  same  week  ;  whilst  the  first  pupils 
were  received  into  the  establishment  on  14th  January, 
1799. 

Truttman's  opinions  are  not  the  less  valuable  because 
he  was  not  Wind  to  Pestalozzi's  weaknesses.  On  25th 
March,  1799,  he  wrote  to  the  minister  as  follows :  "  I 


THE  STANZ  ORPHANS'  SCHOOL.         77 

must  tell  you  frankly  that  the  economical  administration 
of  the  establishment,  the  classification  of  the  children, 
both  for  instruction  and  manual  work  ;  and  the  setting  to 
work  of  the  necessary  superintendents  and  masters,  can 
no  longer  be  delayed  without  injury  to  this  charitable 
institution.  ...  I  admire  the  zeal  of  Citizen  Pestalozzi, 
and  his  untiring  and  devoted  activity  for  the  institution  ; 
this  deserves  honour  and  recognition  ;  but  I  foresee  that 
he  will  not  be  able  to  carry  out  his  ideas,  nor  to  give  the 
undertaking  the  carefully  arranged  development  which 
is  necessary  for  its  success.  Indeed,  without  a  new 
organisation,  which  shall  provide  for  all  the  various  re- 
quirements of  the  institution,  it  cannot  succeed.  This 
excellent  man  has  both  firmness  and  gentleness,  but  un- 
fortunately he  often  uses  them  at  the  wrong  time.  .  .  . 
The  establishment  needs  a  larger  staff." 

This  work  was  done  in  the  face  of  great  opposition  on  the 
part  of  the  parents,  and  much  misunderstandingby  others. 
Pestalozzi  was  accused  of  under-feeding  the  children ; 
being  too  severe  with  them ;  and  seeking  only  his  own 
advantage.  Children  were  persuaded  to  run  away  from 
the  school,  but  not  '*  till  they  were  free  of  their  vermin 
and  their  rags  ".  As  a  Protestant,  Pestalozzi  was  sus- 
pected of  a  design  to  convert  the  children,  who  were 
practically  all  Roman  Catholics.  Writing  to  his  friend 
Gessner,  he  says  :  "  You  will  hardly  believe  that  it  was 
the  Capuchin  friars  and  the  nuns  of  the  convent  that 
showed  the  greatest  sympathy  with  my  work.  Few 
people,  except  Truttman,  took  any  active  interest  in  it. 
Those  from  whom  I  had  hoped  most  were  too  deeply 
engrossed  with  their  high  political  affairs  to  think  of  our 
little  institution  as  having  the  least  degree  of  import- 
ance." 


78  PESTALOZZI. 

Just  as  the  French  army  was  the  cause  of  the  opening 
of  the  institution,  so,  five  months  later,  it  led  to  its 
being  closed.  Retreating  before  the  Austrians  they  were 
in  need  of  a  hospital,  and  hearing  that  there  was  a  large 
building  at  Stanz  they  turned  Pestalozzi  and  his  children 
out  on  8th  June,  1799,  and  took  possession  of  the  con- 
vent. Zschokke,  the  Government  agent,  says  that 
Pestalozzi  gave  to  each  of  the  children  who  were  sent 
away  "  a  change  of  clothes,  some  linen,  and  a  little 
money ".  When  the  French  departed,  some  of  the 
children  returned,  and  Zschokke  on  28th  June  reported 
to  Minister  Rengger  that  "there  still  remain  in  the 
establishment  twenty-two  children  of  both  sexes". 

This  closing  of  the  institution  was  a  blessing  in  dis- 
guise for  Pestalozzi  himself.  He  was  very  ill  and  spit- 
ting blood.  He  went  up  the  Gurnigel  mountain,  in  the 
Bernese  Oberland,  where  there  was  a  medicinal  spring. 
Of  this  visit  he  writes :  "  On  the  Gurnigel  I  enjoyed  days 
of  recreation.  I  required  them ;  it  is  a  wonder  that  I 
am  still  alive.  I  shall  not  forget  those  days  as  long  as 
I  live :  they  saved  me,  but  I  could  not  live  without  my 
work."  In  spite  of  these  facts  he  was  much  blamed  for 
giving  up  the  school  at  Stanz. 

How  little  for  himself,  yet  how  much  for  humanity, 
did  he  gain  at  Stanz.  There  he  discovered  that  his  ideas 
for  the  improvement  of  the  people  were  not  idle  dreams. 
He  says:  "  I  had  children  at  Stanz  whose  powers,  not 
dulled  by  the  weariness  of  unpsychological  home  and 
school  discipline,  developed  very  quickly.  It  was  like 
another  race.  ...  I  saw  the  capacity  of  human  nature, 
and  its  peculiarities,  in  full  play — in  many  ways.  Its 
defects  were  those  of  healthy  nature,  totally  different 
from  the  faults  caused  by  bad  and  artificial  teaching — 


RESULTS  AT  STANZ.  79 

hopeless  languishing  and  complete  crippling  of  the 
mind. 

"  I  saw  in  this  combination  of  ignorance  and  un- 
schooled faculties  a  power  of  understanding,  and  a  firm 
conception  of  the  known  and  the  seen  of  which  our  ABC 
puppets  have  no  notion. 

"  I  learned  from  them — I  must  have  been  blind  not  to 
have  learned — to  know  the  natural  relation  which  real 
knowledge  bears  to  book-knowledge.  I  learnt  from 
them  what  a  handicap  this  one-sided  letter-knowledge 
and  entire  reliance  on  words  (which  are  only  sound  and 
noise  when  there  is  not  something  behind  them)  must 
be.  I  saw  what  a  hindrance  this  may  be  to  the  real 
power  of  observation,  and  the  firm  conception  of  the 
objects  which  surround  us. 

"  Thus  far  I  got  at  Stanz.  I  felt  that  my  experiment 
proved  the  possibility  of  founding  popular  instruction 
on  psychological  grounds :  of  laying  true  knowledge, 
gained  by  sense-impression  at  the  foundation  of  in- 
struction ;  and  of  tearing  away  the  mask  of  its  shallow 
bombast.  I  felt  that  I  could  solve  the  problem  to  un- 
prejudiced and  intelligent  men  :  though,  as  I  well  knew, 
I  could  never  enlighten  the  prejudiced  crowd,  who  are 
like  geese  which,  ever  since  they  cracked  the  shell,  have 
been  confined  in  coop  and  shed,  and  have  lost  all  power 
of  flying  and  swimming  "  {How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

When  he  was  sufficiently  recovered  from  his  illness 
he  again  began  schoolwork.  This  time  it  was  at  Burg- 
dorf.  Again  he  was  beset  with  jealousy  and  misunder- 
standing ;  so  much  so  that  it  was  only  through  the  help 
of  influential  friends  that  he  was  allowed  to  work  in  a 
small  school  the  master  of  which  was  a  shoemaker. 
From  this  school  the  parents  of  the  scholars  and  the 


8o  PESTALOZZI. 

shoemaker  soon  got  him  removed,  and  he  was  sent  to 
a  dame  school  where  only  children  between  four  and 
eight  years  of  age  were  admitted — an  infants'  school — 
and  where  they  were  taught  only  reading  and  writing. 
It  was  thought  that,  at  any  rate,  he  could  do  very  little 
harm  there.  Says  Pestalozzi :  ''  It  was  whispered  that 
I  myself  could  not  write,  nor  work  accounts,  nor  even 
read  decently.  Popular  reports  are  not  always  entirely 
destitute  of  truth  ;  it  is  true  I  could  not  write,  nor  read, 
nor  work  accounts  well."  No :  he  could  only  think 
like  a  genius  and  work  like  a  hero ! 

It  is  interesting,  in  this  connection,  to  remember  that 
when  he  wrote  his  Leonard  and  Gertrude  it  was  "  in- 
sufferably incorrect  and  unpolished,"  and  "  the  want  of 
orthographical  accuracy"  had  to  "  be  rectified  ".  At 
Neuhof  he  taught  the  children  to  work  so  well  and 
quickly  in  arithmetic  that  he  himself  had  to  use  a  slate 
and  pencil  to  check  their  answers.  He  had  vowed  to 
have  done  with  books  when  he  left  college,  and  to  learn 
through  things  and  work.  To  this  resolution  he  had 
firmly  kept.  He  writes  :  "  For  these  last  thirty  years 
I  have  read  no  book,  nor  have  I  been  able  to  read  any ; 
I  had  no  language  left  for  abstract  notions ;  in  my  mind 
there  was  nothing  but  living  truths,  brought  to  my 
consciousness  in  an  intuitive  manner,  in  the  course  of 
my  experience  ;  but  I  was  no  more  able  to  analyse  those 
truths,  than  to  bring  to  my  recollection  the  details  of 
the  observations  by  which  I  had  been  led  to  their  dis- 
covery ".  These  passages  must,  of  course,  be  interpreted 
by  what  we  know  of  his  education  and  training,  and  his 
life-work  thus  far. 

In  this  small  infants'  school  of  twenty-five  children, 
where  the  amiable  indifference  of  the  good  old  dame 


INFANTS'   TEACHER   AT  BURGDORF.  8 1 

left  him  a  free  hand,  Pestalo^zi  was  thoroughly  at 
home.  His  genius  and  his  fatherly  methods  were  in 
suitable  surroundings,  and  his  work  was  a  triumphant 
success.  After  eight  months'  work  the  Burgdorf  School 
Commission  examined  the  children,  and  then  wrote  this 
public  letter  to  Pestalozzi :  ''The  surprising  progress 
of  your  little  scholars  of  various  capacities  shows  plainly 
that  every  one  is  good  for  something,  if  the  teacher 
knows  how  to  get  at  his  abilities  and  develop  them  ac- 
cording to  the  laws  of  psychology.  By  your  method  of 
teaching  you  have  proved  how  to  lay  the  groundwork  of 
instruction  in  such  a  way  that  it  may  afterwards  sup- 
port what  is  built  on  it.  .  .  .  Between  the  ages  of  five  and 
eight,  a  period  in  which  according  to  the  system  of 
torture  enforced  hitherto,  children  have  learnt  to  know 
their  letters,  to  spell  and  read,  your  scholars  have  not 
only  accomplished  all  this  with  a  success  as  yet  un- 
known, but  the  best  of  them  have  already  distinguished 
themselves  by  their  good  writing,  drawing  and  calculat- 
ing. In  them  all  you  have  been  able  so  to  arouse  and 
excite  a  liking  for  history,  natural  history,  mensuration, 
geography,  etc.,  that  thus  future  teachers  must  find 
their  task  a  far  easier  one  if  they  only  know  how  to 
make  good  use  of  the  preparatory  stage  the  children 
have  gone  through  with  you."  Further,  his  plan  of 
instruction  "  could  be  applied  during  the  earliest  years 
at  which  instruction  could  be  given  in  the  family  circle  : 
by  a  mother,  by  a  child  who  was  a  little  older  than  the 
beginner,  or  by  an  intelligent  servant  whilst  doing  her 
household  work  ".  All  of  which  was  doubtless  the  report 
of  the  School  Commission,  but  the  voice  is  the  voice  of 
Pestalozzi  and  the  words  are  his  words— the  commis- 
sioners doubtless  saw  enough  to  believe  in  Pestalozzi, 

6 


82  PESTALOZZI. 

and  then,  like  wise  men,  were  content  to  let  him  speak 
through  them. 

Soon  after  the  issue  of  this  report  Pestalozzi  was 
appointed  master  of  the  second  boys'  school  of  Burgdorf. 
Here  he  did  not  succeed  so  well ;  and  soon  had  to  resign 
owing  to  a  pulmonary  attack.  When  well  enough  to 
resume  work  he  obtained  such  effectual  help  from  some 
of  his  friends  in  office  that  the  Helvetic  Government 
granted  him  the  use  of  the  castle  at  Burgdorf  for  a 
school — M.  Fischer  having  died.  He  managed — thanks 
to  the  help  of  the  "Society  of  the  Friends  of  Education," 
which  had  been  founded,  on  the  initiative  of  Stapfer,  for 
the  purpose  of  promoting  Pestalozzi's  work — to  raise  a 
loan  for  preparing  and  furnishing  the  building  and,  to- 
wards the  end  of  1799,  opened  an  educational  establish- 
ment. In  this  he  was  assisted  by  M.  Kriisi,  a  village 
schoolmaster — then  twenty-five  years  of  age — who  had 
shortlybeforecometo  Burgdorf  with  twenty-eight  orphans, 
whose  parents  were  the  victims  of  the  Austro-Russian 
and  French  war.  Kriisi  had  continued  to  teach  these 
children  in  a  day-school  in  the  castle  at  Burgdorf,  under 
the  superintendence  of  M.  Fischer,  Secretary  to  the 
Helvetian  Minister  of  Public  Instruction,  who  had  been 
sent  by  the  Government  to  open  a  training  college  for 
teachers  in  the  castle,  but,  owing  to  the  necessary  funds 
not  being  supplied,  had  been  unable  to  do  so.  M.  Fischer 
became  greatly  interested  in  Pestalozzi's  theories  and 
work ;  had  many  talks  with  him ;  and  was  the  means 
of  bringing  him  and  Kriisi  together. 

Pestalozzi  was  to  conduct  a  boarding-school  for  the 
children  of  the  well-to-do  people,  and  Kriisi  was  to  con- 
tinue his  day-school.  In  a  letter  (February,  1801)  to  the 
central  Government  at  Bern  he  declares  his  aims  to  be  : — 


THE   BURGDORF  INSTITUTE.  83 

(i)  To  pursue  the  development,  as  experience  should 
suggest,  of  his  methods  in  the  different  branches  of 
public  and  private  education  ; 

(2)  To  publish  the  results  of  his  researches  and 
experiments,  and  to  write,  for  the  guidance  of  well- 
meaning  parents  and  teachers,  such  manuals  as  would 
enable  them  to  carry  out  his  plans  of  instruction ; 
and 

(3)  To  train  teachers  in  the  theory  and  practice  of 
his  work  so  that  they  should  be  wise  and  skilful  therein. 

The  means  by  which  he  proposed  to  carry  out  these 
objects  were  : — 

(i)  The  day-school  at  Burgdorf,  of  which  Kriisi's 
orphans  were  the  nucleus ; 

(2)  The  boarding-school  just  started,  which  was  de- 
signed for  children  of  the  middle  and  higher  classes  ; 

(3)  A  teachers'  training  college  (normal  school)  such 
as  had  been  proposed  under  M.  Fischer ;  and 

(4)  An  orphan  asylum — to  be  supported  by  private 
subscriptions,  and  the  profits,  if  any,  from  the  boarding- 
school,  and  the  sale  of  books. 

Assisted  by  two  other  teachers,  Pestalozzi  and  Kriisi 
soon  began  successfully  to  realise  these  aims  and  ends. 
On  the  first  day  of  the  year  1801,  at  the  request  of  his 
friend  Gessner,  a  bookseller  of  Zurich,  he  wrote  an 
account  of  his  experiments  and  work  up  to  this  point 
under  the  title  :  How  Gertrude  Teaches  her  Children  ;  an 
A  ttempt  to  give  Directions  to  Mothers  how  to  Instruct  their 
own  Children.  This  is  really  an  autobiography  and  ex- 
position of  his  theories.  There  is  no  Gertrude,  other 
than  Pestalozzi  himself;  and  there  are  no  children, 
other  than  all  children.  With  the  contents  of  this 
book  we  shall  deal  later.     It  was  published  in  October, 

6* 


84  PESTALOZZI. 

1801  ;  attracted  much  attention  ;  made  many  converts  ; 
and  led  several  enthusiasts  to  go  to  Burgdorf  to  see 
Pestalozzi  and  study  his  work. 

Besides  this,  perhaps  the  most  profound  and  import- 
ant of  his  writings,  the  following  books  were  issued 
from  the  institution  at  Burgdorf:  (i)  Help  for  Teaching 
Spelling  and  Reading  (1801) ;  (2)  Pestalozzi' s  Elementary 
Books  (iSo^),  in  six  parts,  viz.,  (a)  The  ABC  of  Intuition, 
or  Intuitive-instruction  in  the  Relations  of  Number  (three 
parts) ;  {h)  Intuitive-instruction  in  the  Relations  of  Dimen- 
sions (two  parts) ;  and  (c)  The  Mothers'  Manual,  or  Guide  to 
Mothers  in  Teaching  their  Children  how  to  Observe  and  Thijtk 
(one  part).  The  last  three  {a,  b  and  c)  are  teachers' 
handbooks  on  the  elements  of  arithmetic,  geometry 
and  language.  It  has  been  said  of  them  that  those 
who  really  needed  such  books  would,  by  the  aid  of 
the  books  themselves,  neither  understand  the  prin- 
ciples nor  use  the  exercises  properly ;  whilst  those  who 
understood  the  principles  and  exercises  would  not  need 
the  books. 

The  whole  work  of  teaching,  and  writing  the  text- 
books, was  carried  on  by  Pestalozzi  and  three  assistants, 
viz.,  Kriisi,  of  whom  we  have  already  spoken ;  Tobler, 
who  was  invited  by  Pestalozzi,  at  Kriisi's  suggestion, 
to  help  him  in  the  teaching  of  writing ;  and  Buss,  who 
was  asked  by  Tobler,  at  the  suggestion  of  Kriisi,  to 
assist  Pestalozzi  in  the  teaching  of  drawing. 

Their  school-work  was  inspected  by  a  commission 
appointed  by  the  "  Society  of  the  Friends  of  Education  " 
• — which  financed  Pestalozzi — in  whose  report  are  these 
remarks:  "  The  first  thing  we  noticed  was  that  Pesta- 
lozzi's  pupils  learn  to  spell,  read,  write  and  calculate 
quickly  and  well,  achieving  in  six  months  results  which 


REPORTS   ON   THE   TEACHING  AT   BURGDORF.       85 

an  ordinary  village  schoolmaster's  pupils  would  hardly 
attain  in  three  years.  It  is  true  that  schoolmasters  are 
not  usually  men  like  Pestalozzi,  nor  do  they  discover 
assistants  like  those  of  our  friend.  But  it  appears  to 
us  that  this  extraordinary  progress  depends  less  upon 
the  teachers  than  the  method  of  teaching.  .  .  . 

"  Who  does  not  know  how  ready  the  youngest 
children  are  to  give  everything  a  name  ;  to  put  things 
together,  and  then  to  take  them  to  pieces  again,  for 
the  sake  of  fresh  re-arrangements  ?  Who  does  not 
remember  that  he  preferred  drawing  to  writing  ?  Who 
does  not  know  that  the  most  unlearned  men  are  often 
the  quickest  at  mental  reckonings  ?  Who  does  not 
know  that  children,  both  boys  and  girls,  delight — almost 
as  soon  as  they  can  walk — in  playing  at  soldiers,  and 
in  other  forms  of  exercise  ? 

*'  It  is  on  these  simple  and  well-known  facts  that 
Pestalozzi  bases  his  method  of  instruction.  Were  it 
not  for  the  fact  that  teachers  are  daily  making  the  same 
mistakes  as  others  made  before  them,  we  should  feel 
inclined  to  inquire  how  it  is  that  such  an  idea  never 
occurred  to  any  one  before." 

An  independent  witness,  a  visitor  to  the  institution — 
Charles  Victor  von  Bonstetten — says:  "His  children 
have  learned,  in  from  six  to  ten  months,  writing,  read- 
ing, drawing,  and  a  little  geography  and  French,  and 
have  also  made  astonishing  progress  in  arithmetic. 
They  do  everything  cheerfully  ;  and  their  health  seems 
perfect.  ...  I  look  upon  Pestalozzi's  method  as  a 
precious  seed,  still  young  and  undeveloped,  but  full  of 
promise.  The  success  the  method  has  already  obtained 
should  suffice  to  convince  any  impartial  thinker  of  its 
excellence,  .  .  , 


S6  PESTALOZZI. 

"  The  children  know  Httle,  but  what  they  know  they 
know  well.  In  my  opinion,  there  could  be  nothing  better 
than  the  Burgdorf  school  for  children  of  eight  or  nine. 
.  .  .  The  children  are  very  happy,  and  obviously  take 
great  pleasure  in  their  lessons  :  which  says  a  great  deal 
for  the  method." 

A  Nuremberg  merchant,  though  at  first  prejudiced 
against  the  work,  is  compelled  to  testify  thus :  *'  I  was 
amazed  when  I  saw  children  treating  the  most  com- 
plex calculations  of  fractions  as  the  simplest  matter  in 
the  world.  Problems  which  I  myself  could  not  solve 
without  careful  work  on  paper,  they  did  easily  in  their 
heads,  giving  the  correct  answer  in  a  few  moments,  and 
explaining  the  method  of  working  with  ease  and  facility. 
They  seemed  quite  unconscious  of  having  done  any- 
thing extraordinary." 

The  school  was  inspected  by  a  public  commission, 
appointed  by  the  local  Council,  in  June,  1802.  Their 
report  was  drawn  up  by  Ith,  the  President  of  the  Bern 
Council  of  Public  Education.  This  report  first  deals 
with  Pestalozzi's  principles,  and  declares  that  he  ''has 
discovered  the  real  and  universal  laws  of  all  elementary 
teaching  ".  The  moral  and  religious  life  of  the  es- 
tablishment receives  special  praise ;  as  does  the  disci- 
pline, which,  it  is  remarked,  is  entirely  based  upon 
affection. 

M.  Soyaux,  of  Berlin,  who  visited  the  institution  in 
August,  1802,  thus  speaks  of  certain  points  about  it,  in 
a  pamphlet  which  he  wrote  :  "  His  discipline  is  based 
upon  the  principle  that  children  must  be  allowed  the 
greatest  possible  liberty,  and  that  only  when  they  take 
advantage  of  this  liberty  must  they  be  interfered  with. 
,  .  .  They  are  taught  by  ten  masters,     There  are  alsg 


SUCCESS   AND    POPULARITY,  87 

a  certain  number  of  foreigners  at  the  castle,  who  are 
there  to  study  the  method. 

'*  The  institute  is  young,  and  Pestalozzi's  principles 
are  still  undergoing  development.  As  they  are  not  yet 
mature,  it  causes  the  organisation  of  the  establishment 
to  be  still  incomplete.  Director  and  assistants  are 
working  with  all  their  power  to  perfect  the  undertak- 
ing. One  tries  to  improve  certain  appliances  ;  another 
strives  to  find  a  natural  way  of  teaching  reading, 
number,  etc.  Would  that  all  educational  institutions 
presented  such  a  picture  of  concord  and  harmony,  and 
showed  the  same  zeal  in  advancing  from  progress  to 
progress." 

At  Burgdorf  Pestalozzi  reached  the  highest  point  of 
his  success  as  a  teacher  and  educationist,  though  not  of 
his  fame.  His  popularity  amongst  his  own  people  also 
was  at  its  greatest.  On  this  popularity  Dr.  Biber  re- 
marks :  "  It  is  a  fact,  of  which  the  life  of  almost  every 
distinguished  man  affords  evidence,  that  the  great  mass 
of  the  public,  dull  of  comprehension  and  slow  to 
acknowledge  merit,  is  in  the  same  proportion  unintelli- 
gently  lavish  of  its  admiration,  as  soon  as  a  man  has 
safely  crossed  the  line  of  public  opinion,  and  gone 
through  the  ordeal  of  the  critical  '  sailor's  dip  '.  This 
proved  to  be  the  case  with  Pestalozzi.  He  who  had 
been  an  object  of  commiseration  among  philanthropic 
wiseacres,  and  the  butt  of  every  bad  joke  from  the  lips 
of  the  thoughtless  and  the  unfeeling,  was  now  extolled 
to  the  skies  as  the  man  of  the  age  ;  and  so  high  ran  the 
tide  of  popularity  in  his  favour,  that  he  was  chosen  to 
be  one  of  the  deputies  sent  to  Paris  in  1802,  pursuant 
to  a  proclamation  of  the  French  Consul,  in  order  to 
frame  a  new  constitution  which  should  unite  the  con- 


88  PESTALOZZI. 

Aiding  interests  of  Switzerland,  and  put  a  stop  to  its 
internal  dissensions."  As  a  matter  of  fact  he  was 
elected  by  one  canton  and  one  town. 

Before  his  departure  for  Paris  he  published  a  politi- 
cal pamphlet  entitled  Views  on  the  Objects  to  which  the 
Legislature  of  Helvetia  has  chiefly  to  direct  its  attention, 
in  which  he  put  forward  some  wise  and  moderate 
views  for  reform  and  the  remedy  of  existing  evils.  At 
Paris  he  tried  to  interest  Napoleon  and  his  chief 
ministers  in  his  educational  work,  but  the  First  Con- 
sul declined  to  see  him,  and  declared  that  he  could 
not  be  bothered  about  questions  of  A  B  C.  On  his 
return  to  Burgdorf,  Pestalozzi  is  said  to  have  remarked 
on  being  asked,  "Did  you  see  Bonaparte?" — "No, 
I  did  not  see  Bonaparte  ;  and  Bonaparte  did  not  see 
me". 

The  outcome  of  the  visit  of  the  Swiss  deputies  to 
Paris  was  that  the  form  of  government  of  their  country 
was  changed;  the  "  Executive  Directory"  of  five  mem- 
bers was  dissolved;  an  annual  assembly  of  deputies  (with 
limited  powers)  substituted ;  and  large  powers  of  self- 
government  restored  to  the  cantons — the  Act  of  Media- 
tion. Two  results  of  the  new  order  of  things  were  that 
Pestalozzi  was  turned  out,  on  22nd  August,  1804,  of 
the  castle  at  Burgdorf,  which  was  required  for  the 
canton  Government  offices ;  and  there  was  no  longer 
any  central  national  authority  to  assist  him  in  his 
work.  However,  several  towns  made  generous  offers 
to  him  if  he  would  go  to  them  with  his  school.  The 
canton  De  Vaud  gave  him  the  choice  of  several  castles, 
which  had  previously  been  the  residences  of  deputy 
governors.  The  Government  of  the  canton  of  Bern 
offered  Pestalozzi  the  use  of  the  old  Johanniter  monas- 


AT  MUNCHEN   BUCHSEE.  89 

tery  at  Munchen  Buchsee — a  few  miles  north-west  of 
Bern,  and  near  to  Fellenberg's  school. 

Pestalozzi  decided  to  take  his  upper  school  to  Yverdon, 
and  to  send  his  lower  school  to  Munchen  Buchsee  ;  since 
he  only  had  the  promise  of  one  year's  tenancy  of  the 
old  monastery.  It  was  arranged — by  his  staff,  and  ap- 
parently without  his  knowledge,  in  the  first  instance — 
that  de  Fellenberg  should  have  the  practical  control  of 
the  institution,  while  Pestalozzi  was  to  act  as  educa- 
tional adviser.  This  he  says  "was  not  without  my 
consent,  but  to  my  profound  mortification  ".  It  was 
impossible  that  such  an  arrangement  for  such  a  man 
as  Pestalozzi  could  turn  out  well.  Soon  differences 
and  difficulties  arose  between  Pestalozzi  and  de  Fellen- 
berg. 

Finally  the  whole  of  the  members  of  the  institution  at 
Burgdorf  were  transferred  to  Yverdon,  and  were  glad  to 
be  once  more  under  the  care  of  "Father  Pestalozzi". 
The  teachers  declared  that  they  preferred  the  want  of 
government  under  him  to  the  good  government  of  de 
Fellenberg — the  "man  of  iron"  as  Pestalozzi  called 
him. 

Ramsauer  says  of  his  stay  at  Munchen  Buchsee  :  "  I 
was  unhappy  for  the  first  time  in  my  life.  I  was  still 
table-boy  [servitor,  i.e.,  one  paying  for  his  schooling  by 
certain  domestic  services]  and  under-master,  but  I  had 
nobody  to  comfort  my  heart.  We  missed  more  than 
anything  else  the  love  and  warmth  which  vivified  every- 
thing at  Burgdorf,  and  made  everybody  so  happy.  With 
Pestalozzi  himself  it  was  the  heart  which  dominated 
everything :  with  Fellenberg  the  mind.  Nevertheless, 
Munchen  Buchsee  had  its  good  points  too — there  was 
more  order  there,  and  we  learned  more  than  at  Burgdorf, 


go  PESTALOZZI. 

"  In  February,  1805,  to  my  great  delight,  Pestalozzi 
sent  for  me  to  go  back  to  him  at  Yverdon,  where  I  once 
more  found  a  father's  affection  and  my  dear  masters  Kriisi 
and  Buss.  A  few  months  later  the  whole  institute  had 
rejoined  Pestalozzi  at  Yverdon  Castle." 


CHAPTER  VI. 

YVERDON,  1805-1825. 

At  Yverdon  Pestalozzi  reached  the  summit  of  his  fame 
and  found  the  grave  of  his  practical  work.  In  the 
institute  at  Yverdon  the  large  scheme  which  had  been 
drawn  up  for  Burgdorf  was  not  attempted,  but  all  efforts 
were  concentrated  on  the  education  of  the  pupils  who 
came  to  the  castle,  with  the  result  that  greater  success 
than  ever  before  was,  at  first,  obtained.  Pupils  came 
from  England,  France,  Germany,  Italy,  Russia  and 
Spain.  Deputations  were  sent  from  many  countries  to 
study  and  report  on  the  work.  Private  individuals  went 
from  all  parts,  some  taking  pupils  with  them,  to  see  the 
great  things  which  were  being  done.  Amongst  these 
were  Froebel  (with  pupils),  Herbart,  Dr.  Mayo  (founder 
of  the  famous  Pestalozzian  school  at  Cheam — with 
pupils).  Dr.  Bell  (author  of  The  Madras  System),  Robert 
Owen,  Lord  Brougham,  Karl  von  Raumer  (the  great 
German  historian  of  education — with  a  pupil),  Karl 
Ritter,  M.  Jullien  (writer  on  Pestalozzi's  work),  M. 
Guillaume  (biographer  of  Pestalozzi),  Miss  Edgeworth 
(author  of  Practical  Education)  and  many  others. 
The  Emperor  of  Russia  sent  him  this  letter : — 

**SiR, 

''  The  method  of  teaching  pointed  out  in  your 
works,  and  practised  in  the  institute  of  which  you  are 

91 


92  PESTALOZZI. 

the  founder,  have  appeared  to  me  in  every  way  calculated 
to  extend  true  knowledge  and  to  produce  enlightened  in- 
structors. Having  made  myself  acquainted  with  the 
results  daily  obtained  by  you,  I  have  been  able  fully  to 
appreciate  the  utility  of  your  labours.  I  feel  pleasure  in 
being  able  to  give  you  some  distinguished  proof  of  the  in- 
terest with  which  I  have  viewed  so  valuable  an  under- 
taking, by  creating  you  a  Chevalier  of  the  Order  of  St. 
Wladimir  of  the  fourth  class,  of  which  I  herewith  send 
you  the  decoration,  accompanied  with  the  assurance  of 
my  consideration. 

"(Signed)        Alexander. 

*'Novr.  i6,  1814." 

The  Prussian  Government  sent  seventeen  young  men 
for  a  three  years'  course,  to  be  trained  as  teachers ;  so 
that,  as  the  Minister  writes  to  Pestalozzi :  "  They  will 
be  prepared  not  only  in  mind  and  judgment,  but  also  in 
heart,  for  the  noble  vocation  which  they  are  to  follow, 
and  will  be  filled  with  a  sense  of  the  holiness  of  their 
task,  and  with  new  zeal  for  the  work  to  which  you  have 
devoted  your  life  ".  Fichte,  in  his  Addresses  to  the  German 
Nation,  delivered  in  Berlin  in  1807-8,  declared  that  only 
through  an  efficient  system  of  national  education  could 
national  regeneration  come ;  and  when  asked  which 
existing  institution  of  the  actual  world  could  do  such  a 
work,  he  replied  :  "  The  course  of  instruction  which  has 
been  invented  and  brought  forward  by  Henry  Pestalozzi, 
and  which  is  now  being  successfully  carried  out  under 
his  direction  ".  This  was  spoken  in  no  spirit  of  unquali- 
fied praise,  for  he  did  not  hesitate  to  criticise  adversely 
several  points  in  Pestalozzi's  schemes. 

About  the  same  time  the  Queen  of  Prussia  wrote,  iq 


THE   STAFF  AT  YVERDON.  93 

her  private  diary  :  ''  I  am  Yea.dmg  Leonard  and  Gertrude, 
and  I  delight  in  being  transported  into  the  Swiss  village. 
If  I  could  do  as  I  liked  I  should  take  a  carriage  and 
start  for  Switzerland  to  see  Pestalozzi ;  I  should  warmly 
shake  him  by  the  hand,  and,  my  eyes  filled  with  tears, 
would  speak  my  gratitude.  With  what  goodness,  with 
what  zeal,  he  labours  for  the  welfare  of  his  fellow- 
creatures  !  Yes,  in  the  name  of  humanity,  I  thank  him 
with  all  my  heart." 

Dr.  Biber  thus  describes  the  inner  life  of  the  institute 
during  the  earlier  years  at  Yverdon :  **  Persons  of  the 
most  different  gifts  and  abilities,  and  of  the  most 
opposite  characters,  were  united  together  by  the  un- 
affected love  which  Pestalozzi,  in  years  a  man  verging 
on  the  grave,  but  in  heart  and  mind  a  genuine  child, 
seemed  to  breathe  out  continually,  and  to  impart  to  all 
that  came  within  his  circle.  His  children  forgot  that 
they  had  any  other  home,  his  teachers  that  there  was  any 
world  beside  the  institution.  Even  the  eldest  members 
of  this  great  family,  men  who  had  attained  all  the 
maturity  of  manhood,  venerated  Pestalozzi  with  all  the 
reverence  of  true  filial  affection,  and  cherished  towards 
each  other  a  genuine  brotherly  feeling.  .  .  . 

"  Teachers  and  children  were  entirely  amalgamated  : 
they  not  only  slept  in  the  same  rooms,  and  shared  to- 
gether all  the  enjoyments  and  labours  of  the  day ;  but 
they  were  on  a  footing  of  perfect  ease  and  familiarity. 
There  was  no  pedantic  superiority,  no  foppery  of  con- 
descension, on  the  part  of  the  teacher  ;  nor  was  there  in 
the  pupils  the  slavish  humility  of  fear,  or  the  arrogant  pre- 
sumption of  an  equaHty  which  does  not  exist  in  the 
nature  of  things.  The  same  man  that  read  a  lecture 
on  history  one  hour,  would,  perhaps,  in  the  next  sit  on 


94  PESTALOZZI. 

the  same  form  with  his  pupils  in  a  lesson  of  arithmetic 
or  geometry  ;  nay  he  would,  without  compromising  his 
dignity,  request  their  assistance,  and  receive  their  help. 
Such  facts  were  of  daily  occurrence  in  a  house  to  which 
every  one  was  a  teacher  of  what  he  knew,  and  every 
one,  even  the  head  himself,  a  learner  of  what  he  knew 
not.  [Froebel  used  thus  to  sit  as  a  pupil  amongst  the 
boys.] 

"  Pestalozzi's  example  operated  like  a  spell ;  and  his 
teachers  submitted  in  his  house  to  arrangements  which 
the  same  men,  perhaps,  would  nowhere  else  have  been 
able  to  endure.  They  had  the  immediate  inspection  of 
the  different  apartments,  nay  of  the  beds  and  clothes,  as 
well  as  of  the  books  of  the  children.  In  the  morning 
every  teacher  assisted  those  that  were  especially  com- 
mitted to  his  care,  as  far  as  their  age  might  require  it, 
in  washing  and  dressing  themselves  ;  which  being  done, 
he  conducted  them  to  the  great  hall,  where  the  whole 
family  was  assembled  for  morning  service.  During  the 
day  he  lost  sight  of  them  only  while  they  were  engaged 
in  lessons  with  other  teachers;  but  at  meals,  and  in  the 
hours  of  recreation,  he  joined  them  again ;  he  partici- 
pated in  their  plays,  accompanied  them  in  their  walks, 
and  at  the  close  of  the  day,  followed  them  again  to 
evening  prayers,  and  thence  to  bed.  Yet  in  all  this, 
there  was  on  the  part  of  the  pupils  perfect  freedom ; 
they  were  not  forced  to  be  with  their  teacher  :  but  their 
teacher  was  always  ready  to  be  with  them ;  and  as  his 
presence  imposed  upon  them  no  artificial  restraint,  they 
delighted  in  his  company." 

The  actual  order  of  the  day  for  the  pupils  was :  "  In 
the  morning,  half  an  hour  before  six  the  signal  was  given 
for  getting  up.     Six  o'clock  found  the  pupils  ready  for 


DAILY   ROUTINE   AT   YVERDON.  95 

their  first  lesson,  after  which  they  were  assembled  for 
morning  prayer.  Between  this  and  breakfast  the 
children  had  time  left  them  for  preparing  themselves  for 
the  day  ;  and  at  eight  o'clock  they  were  again  called  to 
their  lessons,  which  continued,  with  the  interruption  of 
from  five  to  seven  minutes'  recreation  between  every 
two  hours,  till  twelve  o'clock.  Half  an  hour  later 
dinner  was  served  up,  and  afterwards  the  children 
allowed  to  take  moderate  exercise  till  half-past  two ; 
when  the  afternoon  lessons  began,  and  were  con- 
tinued till  half-past  four.  From  half-past  four  till  five 
there  was  another  interval  of  recreation,  during  which 
the  children  had  fruit  and  bread  distributed  to  them. 
At  five  the  lessons  were  resumed  till  the  time  of 
supper,  at  eight  o'clock,  after  which,  the  evening  prayer 
having  been  held,  they  were  conducted  to  bed  about 
nine. 

"The  hours  of  recreation  were  mostly  spent  in  inno- 
cent games  on  a  fine  common,  situated  between  the 
castle  and  the  lake,  and  crossed  in  different  directions 
by  beautiful  avenues  of  chestnut  and  poplar  trees.  On 
Wednesday  and  Sunday  afternoons,  if  the  weather  per- 
mitted it,  excursions  of  several  miles  were  made  through 
the  beautiful  scenery  of  the  surrounding  country.  In 
summer  the  children  went  frequently  to  bathe  in  the 
lake,  the  borders  of  which  offered,  in  winter,  fine  op- 
portunities for  skating. 

"  In  bad  weather  they  resorted  to  gymnastic  exercises 
in  a  large  hall  expressly  fitted  up  for  that  purpose.  This 
constant  attention  to  regular  bodily  exercise,  together 
with  the  excellent  climate  of  Yverdon,  and  the  sim- 
plicity of  their  mode  of  living,  proved  so  effectual  in 
preserving  the   health   of  the   children,  that  illness  of 


g6  PESTALOZZI. 

any  kind  made  its  appearance  but  very  rarely,  notwith- 
standing the  number  of  pupils  amounted  at  one  time 
to  upwards  of  a  hundred  and  eighty." 

Professor  Vulliemin,  in  his  recollections  of  the  time 
he  spent  as  a  pupil  under  Pestalozzi  at  Yverdon,  says : 
"  It  [the  castle]  was  built  in  the  shape  of  a  huge  square, 
and  its  great  rooms  and  courts  were  admirably  adapted 
for  the  games  as  well  as  the  studies  of  a  large  school. 
Within  its  walls  were  assembled  from  a  hundred  and 
fifty  to  two  hundred  children  of  all  nations,  who  divided 
their  time  between  lessons  and  happy  play.  It  often 
happened  that  a  game  of  prisoner's  base,  begun  in  the 
castle  court,  would  be  finished  on  the  grass  near  the 
lake.  In  winter  we  used  to  make  a  mighty  snow- 
fortress,  which  was  attacked  and  defended  with  equal 
heroism. 

"Early  every  morning  we  went  in  turns  and  had 
a  shower  of  cold  water  thrown  over  us.  We  were 
generally  bare-headed,  but  once,  when  a  bitterly  cold 
wind  was  blowing,  my  father  took  pity  on  m.e,  and 
gave  me  a  hat.  My  companions  no  sooner  saw  it 
than  they  raised  the  shout,  '  A  hat,  a  hat ! '  It 
was  quickly  knocked  off  my  head,  and  a  hundred 
hands  sent  it  flying  about  the  playground  and  corri- 
dors, till  at  last  it  went  spinning  through  a  window  and 
fell  into  the  river  that  flows  by  the  walls  of  the  castle. 
It  was  carried  away  to  the  lake  and  I  never  saw  it 
again. 

"  Our  masters  were  for  the  most  part  young  men, 
and  nearly  all  '  sons  of  the  revolution,'  who  had  grown 
up  around  Pestalozzi,  their  father  and  ours.  There 
were,  indeed,  a  few  educated  men  and  scholars  who 
had  come  to   share   his  task ;    but,  taken   altogether. 


PUPILS'   LIFE   AT  YVERDON.  97 

there  was  not  much  learning.  I  myself  heard  Pesta- 
lozzi  boast,  when  an  old  man,  of  not  having  read  any- 
thing for  forty  years.  Nor  did  our  masters,  his  first 
pupils,  read  much  more  than  Pestalozzi  himself.  Their 
teaching  was  addressed  to  the  understanding  rather 
than  the  memory,  and  had  for  its  aim  the  harmonious 
cultivation  of  the  germs  implanted  in  us  by  Providence. 
'  Make  it  your  aim  to  develop  the  child,'  Pestalozzi  was 
never  tired  of  repeating,  '  and  do  not  merely  train  him 
as  you  would  train  a  dog,  and  as  so  many  children  in 
our  schools  are  often  trained.' 

"  Our  studies  were  almost  entirely  based  on  num- 
ber, form  and  language.  Language  was  taught  us 
by  the  help  of  sense-impression ;  we  were  taught  to 
see  correctly,  and  in  that  way  to  form  for  ourselves  a 
just  idea  of  the  relations  of  things.  What  we  had 
thoroughly  understood  we  had  no  trouble  to  express 
clearly. 

"  We  had  to  discover  the  truths  of  geometry  for  our- 
selves. After  being  once  put  in  the  way  of  it,  the  end 
to  be  reached  was  pointed  out  to  us,  and  we  were  left 
to  work  alone.  It  was  the  same  with  arithmetic,  which 
we  did  aloud,  without  paper.  Some  of  us  became 
wonderfully  quick  at  this,  and  as  charlatanism  pene- 
trates everywhere,  these  only  were  brought  before  the 
numerous  strangers  that  the  name  of  Pestalozzi  daily 
attracted  to  Yverdon.  We  were  told  over  and  over 
again  that  a  great  work  was  going  on  in  our  midst, 
that  the  eyes  of  the  world  were  upon  us,  and  we  readily 
believed  it." 

De  Guimps  gives  this  account  of  the  daily  routine, 
etc.,  for  the  boys:  ''At  seven  o'clock,  after  the  first 
lesson,  the  pupils  washed  themselves  in  the  courtyard, 

7 


98  PESTALOZZI. 

The  water,  pumped  from  the  well,  ran  through  a  long 
pipe  with  holes  on  both  sides,  from  which  each  child 
received  a  pure,  fresh  stream— jugs  and  basins  being 
unknown.  After  our  toilet  came  breakfast,  consisting 
of  soup.  Lessons  began  again  at  eight.  At  ten  came 
an  interval  for  rest,  when  any  one  who  was  hungry 
could  get  dried  fruit  and  bread  from  Mrs.  Kriisi.  At 
noon  there  was  an  hour's  recreation  for  bathing  or 
prisoner's  base  on  the  grass  behind  the  lake.  At  one 
o'clock  dinner  of  soup,  meat  and  vegetables.  Lessons 
again  from  half-past  one  to  half-past  four.  Then  the 
afternoon  meal ;  either  of  cheese,  fruit,  or  bread-and- 
butter.  Each  could  take  his  share  away  with  him,  and 
eat  it  where  he  liked  during  the  play-hour,  which 
lasted  till  six  o'clock,  and  which  was  passed,  when  the 
weather  was  fine,  either  behind  the  lake  or  in  the  large 
garden  adjoining  the  castle,  where  every  child  has  his 
own  little  garden  plot.  From  six  to  eight  o'clock  more 
lessons,  and  then  supper,  which  was  much  the  same  as 
dinner.  .  .  .  The  food,  though  not  very  delicately  pre- 
pared, was  plain,  wholesome  and  abundant.  ... 

"The  pupils  were  allowed  very  considerable  liberty. 
As  the  two  doors  of  the  castle  were  open  all  day,  and 
there  was  no  porter,  they  could  go  in  and  out  at  all 
hours  as  if  they  were  at  home,  and  they  did  not  abuse 
this  freedom.  The  lessons  generally  lasted  ten  hours  a 
day.  No  one  lesson  was  longer  than  an  hour,  and  they 
were  all  followed  by  a  short  interval,  during  which  the 
classes  usually  changed  rooms.  Some  of  the  lessons 
consisted  of  gymnastic  exercises,  or  some  sort  of 
manual  work,  such  as  cardboard  work  or  gardening. 
The  last  hour  of  the  day  was  a  free  hour,  given  up  to 
what  the  pupils  called  their  own  work.     They  could  do 


PUPILS    LIFE   AT   YVERDON.  99 

anything  they  wished — draw,  read  geography,  write 
letters,  or  arrange  their  note-books.  .  .  . 

"  Pestalozzi's  rooms  were  on  the  second  floor  of  the 
north  front.  He  often  invited  the  masters  there  to  take 
coffee  with  him,  and  not  infrequently  held  receptions 
in  the  evening,  to  which  some  of  the  pupils  were 
asked.  .  .  .  The  end  of  the  year  was  devoted  to  making 
New  Year  albums  to  send  to  parents,  containing 
drawings,  maps,  mathematical  problems,  fragments  of 
history,  descriptions  of  natural  objects,  and  literary 
compositions.  On  New  Year's  day  .  .  .  the  pupils  of 
each  class  decorated  their  room,  transforming  it  into  a 
woodland  scene,  with  cottage,  chapel,  ruins,  and  some- 
times a  fountain,  which  was  so  arranged  as  to  play  when 
Pestalozzi  came  in.  Fir-branches,  ivy  and  moss  were 
fetched  in  large  quantities  from  the  neighbouring  forests, 
and  transparencies,  with  emblems  and  inscriptions, 
were  secretly  prepared  ;  for  the  decoration  of  each  room 
was  to  be  a  surprise,  not  only  to  Pestalozzi,  but  to  the 
pupils  of  the  other  classes.  Songs  were  also  sung  in 
honour  of  Pestalozzi.  The  principal  idea  in  most  of  the 
inscriptions  was :  *  In  summer  you  take  us  to  see 
nature :  to-day  we  try  to  bring  nature  to  see  you '. 
Frequently,  on  this  day,  the  pupils  performed  a 
dramatic  piece,  the  subject  generally  being  one  of  the 
great  episodes  from  Swiss  history  of  mediaeval  times. 
For  these  plays  the  actors  made  their  own  costumes 
and  weapons  from  coloured  paper  and  cardboard." 

The  following  extracts  from  the  diary  of  Merian,  of 
Basle,  a  pupil  from  1806  to  1810,  give  a  peep  into  the 
domestic  life  at  the  castle  : — 

"  I2th  Jan.,  1808. — Pestalozzi's  birthday  festival.  At 
the  end  of  the  day  the  richer  pupils  made  a  collection 

7* 


lOO  PESTALOZZI. 

amongst  themselves  for  the  poor  of  the  town  of  Yverdon. 
Mrs.  Pestalozzi  and  Mrs.  Kuster  took  charge  of  the 
money,  which  amounted  to  four  pounds.  .  .  . 

"30th  Sept.,  1809. — To-day  is  the  fortieth  anni- 
versary of  Father  Pestalozzi's  marriage.  Great  rejoic- 
ings;  discourse  by  Niederer;  beautiful  songs  sung, 
room  decorated  with  garlands.  Grand  supper  for  three 
hundred  people  in  five  rooms.  Afterwards  dancing, 
opened  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Pestalozzi  alone,  in  the  old- 
fashioned  way." 

The  curriculum  included  ancient  and  modern  lan- 
guages, geography,  natural  history,  physical  science, 
mathematics,  drawing,  singing,  history  and  religion. 
Not  all  of  these  were  taught  according  to  the  reformed 
methods  of  Pestalozzi,  but  only  geography,  mathe- 
matics, spelling,  perspective  drawing  and  singing. 
Pestalozzi's  Elementary  Books  were  here  used  only 
for  beginners,  and  the  individual  teachers  were  left  to 
apply  the  principles  to  their  own  teaching  so  as  to  make 
their  instruction  more  and  more  "  mentally  intuitive  ". 
Some  of  the  courses  which  were  thus  worked  out  by  the 
teachers  themselves  were  published  in  the  form  of 
manuals  on  arithmetic,  geometry  and  perspective 
drawing — by  Kriisi,  Ladomus,  Ramsauer  and  others. 
One  such  manual  was  published  in  Dublin  in  1821,  and 
has  this  title-page:  ^^  Intuitive  Mental  Arithmetic  ^ 
theoretical  and  practical,  on  the  principles  of  H. 
Pestalozzi,  by  L.  Du  Puget,  late  a  student  and  teacher, 
at  his  institute,  at  Yverdon,  in  Switzerland,  and,  at 
present,  a  master  in  the  establishment  at  Abbeyleix,  in 
Ireland  ".  In  the  preface  is  this  interesting  paragraph  : 
"  It  may  be  necessary  to  give  the  meaning  of  the  word 
Intuition  as  used  in  this  work.     In   Qi;"de?-  to  fix  the 


TEXT-BOOKS   USED   AT  YVERDON.  lOI 

attention  of  the  children  and  to  give  them  clear  ideas 
of  number,  it  has  been  found  extremely  useful  to 
calculate  with  pebbles,  beans,  marbles,  etc.,  and  this  has 
been  termed  the  teaching  of  Intuition  or  the  Intuitive 
method." 

Certain  books  drawn  up  by  Joseph  Schmid  (the 
mathematical  teacher  of  the  institute),  and  approved  by 
Pestalozzi  and  his  staff,  are  practically  authorised  and 
improved  editions  of  the  Elementary  Books.  These  were 
intended  to  be  aids  for  teachers,  and  included  :  (i)  The 
Elements  of  Drawing ;  (2)  The  Elements  of  Form  and 
Size,  commonly  called  Geometry  (in  three  parts) ;  (3)  The 
Elements  of  Number,  forming  the  basis  of  Algebra ;  (4) 
The  Elements  of  Algebra ;  and  (5)  Application  of  Number 
to  Space,  Time,  Value  and  Ciphers.  A  book  on  similar 
lines,  a  Manual  of  Elementary  Geography,  was  published 
by  Henning  (a  biographer  of  Pestalozzi),  one  of  the 
young  men  sent  from  Prussia  to  be  trained  under 
Pestalozzi.  Pfeiffer  and  Nageli,  both  teachers  at  the 
institute,  drew  up  a  series  of  exercises  in  singing, 
together  with  some  simple  tunes  specially  written  for 
an  educational  course. 

The  results  of  the  curriculum  were  necessarily  bad. 
As  Raumer  says  :  **  Most  of  the  teachers  of  the  institu- 
tion might  be  regarded  as  so  many  separate  and  inde- 
pendent teachers,  who  had  indeed  received  their  first 
instruction  there,  but  who  had  passed  much  too  soon 
from  learning  to  teaching,  and  wished  to  see  how  they 
could  fight  their  way  through.  There  was  never  any 
such  thing  as  a  real  pedagogical  lecture.  Under  such 
a  course  of  training,  it  could  not  happen  otherwise  than 
that  some  of  the  teachers  should  strike  into  peculiar 
paths ;  of  this  Schmid  gave  an  example.     But  it  was 


102  PESTALOZZI. 

an  equally  necessary  consequence  that  the  usual 
characteristic  of  such  teachers  should  make  itself  ap- 
parent :  namely,  a  great  want  of  self-knowledge  and 
of  a  proper  modest  estimate  of  their  own  labours. 

"  '  Man  only  learns  to  know  himself  in  man.'  I  must 
know  what  others  have  done  in  my  department  of 
science,  in  order  that  I  may  assign  the  proper  place 
and  rank  to  my  own  labours.  It  is  incredible  how  many 
of  the  mistaken  views  and  practices  of  Pestalozzi  and 
his  teachers  sprang  from  this  source." 

At  the  other  extreme  was  the  work  of  the  subordinate 
teachers.  These  were  supposed  rigidly  to  follow  the 
Elementary  Books,  neither  subtracting  from  nor  adding 
to  them.  Moreover,  though  they  worked  willingly  and 
for  the  love  of  Pestalozzi,  and  the  work's  sake,  they 
were  sadly  overworked.  Ramsauer — who  was  first  a 
boy  under  Pestalozzi  at  Burgdorf,  and  later  one  of  his 
most  loyal  and  devoted  assistants — thus  describes  the 
teachers'  work:  "They  were  to  help  to  bear  every 
burden,  every  unpleasantness,  every  domestic  care,  and 
to  be  responsible  for  everything.  Thus,  for  example, 
in  their  leisure  hours  (that  is,  when  they  had  no  lessons 
to  give)  they  were  required  at  one  time  to  work  some 
hours  every  day  in  the  garden,  at  another  to  chop  wood 
for  the  fire,  and,  for  some  time,  even  to  light  them  in 
the  morning,  or  transcribe,  etc. ;  there  were  some  years 
in  which  no  one  of  us  was  found  in  bed  after  three 
o'clock  in  the  morning ;  and  we  had  to  work,  summer 
and  winter,  from  three  in  the  morning  till  six  in  the 
evening."  Ramsauer's  own  time-table  shows  that  he 
was  almost  wholly  occupied  with  official  duties  from 
two  or  three  o'clock  in  the  morning  till  nine  in  the 
evening. 


SUBORDINATE   MASTERS'  WORK.  103 

De  Guimps  tells  us  that  "  the  youngest  masters,  who 
were  generally  Burgdorf  pupils,  were  in  charge  out  of 
school.  They  slept  in  the  dormitories,  and,  in  recrea- 
tion time,  played  with  the  pupils  with  as  much  enjoy- 
ment as  the  children  themselves.  They  worked  in  the 
garden  with  them,  bathed  with  them,  walked  with 
them,  and  were  in  every  respect  on  the  friendliest 
terms  with  them.  They  were  divided  into  sets,  each 
set  taking  its  turn  every  third  day,  for  this  superintend- 
ence kept  them  busy  from  morning  till  night.  .  .  .  The 
week's  work  was  reviewed  at  a  general  meeting  of  the 
teachers  every  Saturday.  .  .  . 

"  When  we  consider  the  material  conditions  of  the 
life  of  the  masters  in  the  Yverdon  institute  we  can  have 
no  doubt  either  of  their  devotion  to  Pestalozzi  and  his 
work  or  of  the  lofty  and  disinterested  motives  which  first 
attracted  them  to  him,  and  then  kept  them  with  him. 
Their  lodging  was  even  more  primitive  than  their  living. 
Some  of  the  oldest  of  them  lived  outside  the  castle,  but 
the  rest  had  not  even  a  private  room,  and  when  they 
wanted  to  work  alone,  they  had  to  construct  little 
wooden  cabins  in  the  upper,  uninhabited  storeys  of  the 
round  towers  which  crowned  the  four  corners  of  the  old 
building." 

To  endure  such  labour  and  conditions  of  labour  was 
indeed  a  tribute  to  their  own  worth ;  and  not  less  to 
the  fine  influence  of  Pestalozzi.  As  Dr.  Biber  remarks  : 
'*  To  render  them  fit  and  willing  to  fill  their  stations  in 
this  manner,  required  ...  a  deep  sense  to  be  awakened 
within  them  of  the  exalted  and  responsible  character 
of  their  office,  and  their  zeal  needed  persevering  en- 
couragement from  the  highest  motives.  For  this  pur- 
pose, Pestalozzi  endeavoured  to  make  the  teaching  of 


I04  PESTALOZZI. 

others  a  source  of  instruction  :  the  government  of  others 
a  means  of  moral  improvement  to  themselves.  On  two 
evenings  in  the  week  he  met  all  the  teachers,  except 
such  as  were  at  the  time  necessarily  engaged  with  the 
pupils,  in  a  general  assembly,  alternately  devoted  to 
the  general  means  of  instruction  and  discipline,  and  of 
the  individual  state  of  each  pupil." 

Another  serious  practical  difficulty  was  the  fact  that 
two  different  languages  had  to  be  spoken.  In  i8og,  of 
the  pupils  about  sixty  per  cent,  were  Swiss,  the  remainder 
being  made  up  of  Germans,  French,  Russians,  Italians, 
Spaniards,  Americans  and  English.  There  were  fifteen 
teachers,  nine  of  whom  were  Swiss;  and  thirty-two 
persons  who  were  studying  Pestalozzi's  method,  seven 
of  whom  were  natives  of  Switzerland.  Raumer  writes  : 
"With  such  a  medley  of  children,  the  institution  was 
devoid  of  a  predominant  mother-tongue,  and  assumed 
the  mongrel  character  of  a  border-province.  Pestalozzi 
read  the  prayers  every  morning  and  evening,  first  in 
German,  then  in  French  !  At  the  lessons  in  the  German 
language,  intended  for  German  children,  I  found  French 
children  who  did  not  understand  the  most  common 
German  word."  Dr.  Mayo,  speaking  of  several  English- 
men who  were  staying  at  the  institute,  writes:  "We 
rise  between  six  and  seven,  prayers  at  seven,  soon  after 
breakfast  in  a  large  room,  just  when  we  please  to  go 
there.  Some  of  the  masters  drop  in,  in  the  same  way, 
and  English,  French,  German  and  Latin  are  perhaps 
all  talked  in  succession." 

Still  more  difficult  was  it  to  carry  out  a  system  of 
education  based  upon  the  principle  that  the  pupil  must 
be  taught  in  such  a  way  that  at  every  step  of  his 
development   the  instruction   is   exactly  suited  to  his 


TOO  MUCH  DONE  FOR  SHOW.         IO5 

needs,  when  pupils  were  admitted  at  all  ages ;  in  all 
conditions  of  advancement ;  and  with  every  variety  of 
previous  training.  What  the  principle  required  was 
that  the  pupil  should  begin,  continue  and  end  his 
education  under  the  influence  of  the  system.  It  was 
impossible  to  uproot  the  bad  habits  of  many  years 
of  wrong  training,  and  begin  everything  afresh.  The 
attempt  to  pour  new  wine  into  old  bottles  had  its 
inevitable  result. 

Added  to  these  obstacles  to  thorough  and  successful 
work  were  the  interruptions  and  distractions  of  many 
visitors.  Ramsauer  says  :  *'  It  was  nothing  unusual 
in  summer  for  strangers  to  come  to  the  castle  four  or 
five  times  in  the  same  day,  and  for  us  to  have  to  interrupt 
the  instruction  to  expound  the  method  to  them  ".  Writ- 
ing from  Yverdon,  on  25th  September,  1819,  Dr.  Mayo 
says:  ''We  have  had  a  great  many  English  here 
lately.  I  spent  the  whole  day  with  them,  showing 
them  the  institution  in  the  morning."  These  visitors 
included  Lord  and  Lady  Elgin  and  family  ("  a  troop  of 
Elgins  "),  Lady  Ellenborough  ("with  a  large  party"), 
"  an  old  Oxford  friend,"  "  several  young  men,"  and 
others.  Pupils  were  sometimes  taken  to  the  hotel  at 
which  an  important  personage  was  staying,  so  that  a 
demonstration  might  be  given  to  him. 

Again,  it  is  neither  unkind  nor  unfair  to  say  that  both 
Pestalozzi  and  his  staff  were  somewhat  overcome  by 
the  royal  and  exalted  approval  and  patronage  which 
their  work  received,  and  by  the  almost  universal  applause 
showered  upon  it.  They  seem  almost  to  have  thought 
themselves  as  wise  and  wonderful  as  their  ignorant 
(educationally)  and  impulsive  admirers  deemed  them  ; 
and  they  developed  the  pride  which  goes  before  a  fall. 


I06  PESTALOZZI. 

Pestalozzi  himself  speaks  of  '*  the  great  delusion  under 
which  we  lay  at  that  period,  namely,  that  all  those  things 
in  regard  to  which  we  had  strong  intentions  and  some 
clear  ideas,  were  really  as  they  ought  to  have  been,  and 
as  we  should  have  liked  to  make  them.  .  .  .  We  an- 
nounced publicly  things  which  we  had  neither  the 
strength  nor  the  means  to  accomplish.  There  are 
hundreds  and  hundreds  of  these  vain  boastings  of  which 
I  do  not  like  to  speak." 

The  enemies  and  opponents  of  the  work  were  em- 
boldened by  such  confirmations  of  their  criticisms  ;  and 
the  public  journals  in  Switzerland  attacked  the  institu- 
tion. Referring  to  this,  Pestalozzi  says  that  the  papers 
began  "  to  speak  decidedly  against  our  pretensions, 
asserting  that  what  we  did  was  by  no  means  what  we 
considered  and  represented  ourselves  to  be  doing.  But 
instead  of  penitently  returning  to  modesty,  we  sturdily 
resisted  this  opposition.  While  participating  in  this 
temerity,  which  is  now  incomprehensible  to  me,  I  began 
to  be  sensible  that  we  were  treading  in  paths  which 
might  lead  us  astray,  and  that,  in  truth,  many  things  in 
the  midst  of  us  were  not  as  they  should  have  been,  and 
as  we  endeavoured  to  make  them  appear  in  the  eyes  of 
the  world." 

Pestalozzi  and  his  staff  appealed  to  the  Swiss  Diet 
to  appoint  a  commission  to  formally  examine  the  in- 
stitution. Their  request  was  granted  and  three  com- 
missioners appointed,  viz.^  M.  Merian,  a  member  of  the 
executive  council  of  Basle ;  M.  Trechsel,  professor  of 
mathematics  at  Bern ;  and  Pere  Girard,  the  famous 
educational  reformer  of  Fribourg.  These  visited  the 
institute  in  November,  i8og,  and  spent  five  days  in 
examining  it.     They  steadfastly  refused  to  inquire  into 


A   HOUSE  DIVIDED   AGAINST   ITSELF.  lO/ 

the  aims  and  principles  of  the  work,  and  confined  them- 
selves wholly  to  the  results  produced.  After  their  in- 
spection they  Wrote  a  report  which  was  presented  to  the 
Diet  in  1810  :  a  vote  of  thanks,  on  behalf  of  the  nation, 
was  accorded  to  Pestalozzi ;  and  the  report  ordered  to  be 
printed.  Whilst  recognising  many  merits  in  the  work 
of  the  institution,  the  commissioners  pointed  out  many 
things  which  they  thought  might  be  improved ;  and,  on 
the  whole,  it  may  be  said  that  the  work  was  damned 
with  faint  praise.  A  long  and  heated  controversy 
between  the  opponents  and  friends  (including  the  staff) 
of  the  school  took  place  in  the  public  journals,  and  by 
pamphlets  and  books,  the  result  of  which  was  anything 
but  favourable  to  the  success  of  the  work  or  harmony 
amongst  the  workers. 

Much  light  is  thrown  upon  what  we  may  call  the 
domestic  affairs  of  the  institution  by  Ramsauer,  himself 
a  member  of  it.  He  writes :  "In  Burgdorf  [where 
Ramsauer  was  one  of  the  pupils]  an  active  and  entirely 
new  life  opened  to  me  ;  there  reigned  so  much  love  and 
simplicity  in  the  institution,  the  life  was  so  genial — I 
could  almost  say  patriarchal ;  not  much  was  learned, 
it  is  true,  but  Pestalozzi  was  the  father,  and  the  teachers 
were  the  friends  of  the  pupils.  ...  At  Yverdon  ...  we 
all  felt  that  more  must  be  learned  than  at  Burgdorf; 
but  we  all  fell,  in  consequence,  into  a  restless  pushing 
and  driving,  and  the  individual  teachers  into  a  scramble 
after  distinction.  Pestalozzi,  indeed,  remained  the  same 
noble-hearted  old  man,  wholly  forgetting  himself,  and 
living  only  for  the  welfare  of  others,  and  infusing  his 
own  spirit  into  the  entire  household.  ...  So  long  as 
the  institution  was  small,  Pestalozzi  could,  by  his 
thoroughly  amiable  personal  character,  adjust  at  once 


I08  PESTALOZZI. 

every  slight  discordance,  he  stood  in  much  closer  relation 
with  every  individual  member  of  the  circle,  and  could 
thus  observe  every  peculiarity  of  disposition,  and  influ- 
ence it  according  to  necessity. 

"This  ceased  when  the  family  life  was  transformed 
in  the  institution  into  a  constitutional  state  existence. 
Now  the  individual  was  more  easily  lost  in  the  crowd  : 
thus  there  arose  a  desire,  on  the  part  of  each,  to  make 
himself  felt  and  noticed.  Egotism  made  its  appearance 
every  day  in  more  pointed  forms.  Envy  and  jealousy 
rankled  in  the  breasts  of  many." 

Of  these  things  Pestalozzi  himself  was  not  unaware. 
When  the  institution  was  removed  from  Munchen  Buch- 
see  to  Yverdon,  he  recognised  that  it  contained  "  the 
seeds  of  its  own  internal  decay  in  the  unequal  and  con- 
tradictory character  of  the  abilities,  opinions,  inclinations 
and  claims  of  its  members ;  although  as  yet  this  dis- 
sension had  not  done  anything  but  declare  itself  general, 
unrestrained  and  fierce.  .  .  .  But  the  seeds  of  our  decay 
had  been  sown,  and  though  they  were  still  invisible  in 
many  places,  had  taken  deep  root.  .  .  . 

"  Led  aside  by  worldly  temptations  and  apparent 
good  fortune  from  the  purity,  simplicity  and  innocence 
of  our  first  endeavours,  divided  among  ourselves  in 
our  inmost  feelings,  and  from  the  first  made  incapable, 
by  the  heterogeneous  nature  of  our  peculiarities,  of  ever 
becoming  of  one  mind  and  one  heart  in  spirit  and  in 
truth  for  the  attainment  of  our  objects,  we  stood  there 
outwardly  united,  even  deceiving  ourselves  with  respect 
to  the  real  truth  of  our  inclination  to  this  union.  And 
unfortunately  we  advanced,  each  one  in  his  own  manner, 
with  firm,  and  at  one  time  with  rapid  steps  along  a  path 
which,  without  our  being  really  conscious  of  it,  separ- 


A   HOUSE  DIVIDED  AGAINST   ITSELF.  IO9 

ated  us  every  day  further  from  the  possibiHty  of  our 
ever  becoming  united." 

During  the  year  18 10  these  personal  differences 
between  members  of  the  staff,  which  had  been  growing 
for  some  time,  became  so  acute  that  one  of  the  most 
important  of  them — Schmid,  the  mathematical  teacher 
and  business  manager — left  the  institute.  This  caused 
very  great  grief  to  Pestalozzi.  Again  also  his  extravagant 
generosity  and  unbusiness-like  habits  brought  him  into 
serious  financial  difficulties.  By  1815  matters  were  so 
bad  that  the  staff,  in  despair,  invited  Schmid  to  return. 
This  was  the  beginning  of  the  end.  The  domestic 
quarrels  were  soon  revived,  with  increased  bitterness  ; 
lawsuits  arose,  one  of  which  lasted  seven  years.  Kriisi, 
the  most  loyal  and  loving  of  his  admirers  and  helpers, 
left  the  institute  in  1816 — writing  this  tender  note  of 
farewell :  "  Father,  my  time  of  enjoying  your  presence 
is  past.  I  must  leave  your  institution,  as  it  is  now 
conducted,  if  I  am  not  for  ever  to  lose  my  courage 
and  strength  to  live  for  you  and  your  work.  For  all 
that  you  were  to  me  and  all  that  I  was  able  to  be  to 
you,  I  thank  God  ;  for  all  my  shortcomings,  I  pray  God 
and  yourself  to  forgive  me."  Niederer,  the  ablest  of  all 
the  exponents  of  Pestalozzi's  views,  left  him  in  1817. 
Kriisi  afterwards  established  a  private  school  for  boys  in 
Yverdon.  Five  years  later  a  reconciliation  was  brought 
about;  but  the  greatest  possible  mischief  had  been 
done  to  the  fair  fame  of  the  institution,  and  public 
opinion  and  confidence  had  received  a  severe  shock,  in 
consequence  of  the  newspaper  and  controversial  writings 
connected  with  these  quarrels. 

Though  such  things  were  happening  at  home  still 
Pestalozzi's  name  and  fame  stood  high  in  other  countries, 


I  lO  PESTALOZZI. 

When  the  allied  army,  violating  the  country's  neutrality, 
passed  through  Switzerland  to  attack  Napoleon,  the 
castle  and  other  buildings  at  Yverdon  were  requisi- 
tioned for  military  purposes.  To  escape  this  infliction 
two  town's  deputies,  accompanied  by  Pestalozzi,  were 
sent  to  ask  that  the  town  might  be  excused.  Thanks 
to  Pestalozzi's  influence — he  was  "  received  with  most 
extraordinary  favour  " — they  were  successful.  Pupils 
still  came  to  the  institute  from  other  countries. 

In  1816,  M.  Jullien  took  with  him  twenty-four 
students  from  France  ;  though  he  stayed  only  a  year, 
owing,  it  is  said,  to  the  conduct  of  Schmid.  Dr.  Mayo 
took  several  pupils  from  England  to  Yverdon  in  i8ig. 
Mr.  Greaves,  an  Englishman  who  did  much  for  the 
founding  of  infants'  schools  in  England,  joined  the 
institute  and  took  part  in  its  work.  It  is  said  that 
about  half  a  dozen  poor  children  were  sent  from  Eng- 
land to  the  school. 

Neither  was  Pestalozzi's  ever-youthful  energy  quenched 
or  his  hopeful  spirit  damped,  and  in  1818  he  established 
a  Poor  School  at  Clindy,  a  hamlet  near  Yverdon.  This 
had  twelve  pupils — neglected  children — and  was  con- 
ducted on  the  lines  of  the  original  Poor  School  at 
Neuhof.  ''They  were  to  be  brought  up  as  poor  boys," 
he  says,  "  and  receive  that  kind  of  instruction  which 
is  suitable  for  the  poor,  including,  amongst  other  things, 
chopping  wood  and  carting  manure."  Here  Pestalozzi 
was  himself  again.  In  a  little  world  where  he  him- 
self could  be  all  and  everything,  he,  though  an  old  man 
of  seventy-two,  repeated  his  greatest  personal  success. 
"  Old,  absentminded,  and  incapable  as  he  seemed  in 
ordinary  affairs,  he,  as  though  by  enchantment,  gained 
the  attention  and   the  affection  of  the   children,  and 


THE   CLINDY   POOR  SCHOOL.  Ill 

bent  them  entirely  to  his  will "  (Quick,  Educational 
Reformers). 

The  Clindy  Poor  School  soon  became  famous  ;  and 
in  a  few  months  there  were  thirty  pupils.  But  unfortun- 
ately, as  it  turned  out,  Pestalozzi,  with  what  he  calls 
his  *'  unrivalled  incapacity  to  govern,"  allowed  the  cur- 
riculum to  be  more  and  more  brought  into  line  with  that 
at  the  institute  ;  other  teachers  took  part  in  the  work  ; 
paying  pupils  were  admitted;  and  finally  the  whole 
character  of  the  school  changed.  Schmid  then  per- 
suaded him  to  transfer  the  school  to  the  Yverdon  in- 
stitute. 

Pestalozzi  had  hoped,  a  little  later  on,  to  take  the 
children  to  Neuhof,  and  there  re-establish  for  his  declining 
years  the  undertaking  with  which  he  had  begun  his  life's 
work.  Each  of  the  poor  children  had  been  bound  over 
to  stay  in  the  school  for  five  years.  When  this  time 
expired  not  one  remained.  Of  this  he  writes  :  ''  The 
illusion  in  my  mind,  as  to  the  possibility  of  transplanting 
to  Neuhof  an  establishment  in  Yverdon  of  which  not  an 
inch  was  in  reality  any  longer  mine,  was  now  entirely 
dispelled.  To  resign  myself  to  this  conviction,  required 
me  to  do  no  less  than  abandon  all  my  hopes  and  aims 
in  regard  to  this  project,  as  for  me  completely  unattain- 
able. I  did  so  at  last,  and  on  17th  March,  1824,  I 
announced  m}^  total  inability  further  to  fulfil  the  expecta- 
tions and  hopes  which  I  had  excited,  by  my  projected 
Poor  School,  in  the  hearts  of  so  many  philanthropists 
and  friends  of  education." 

Within  a  year  came  the  last  sad  blow:  broken  by 
internal  dissensions,  and  crushed  by  debt,  the  institute  at 
Yverdon  had  to  be  closed ;  after  having  stood  as  the 
beacon  light  of  education  for  more  than  twenty  years. 


112  PESTALOZZI. 

And  now  Pestalozzi,  an  old  man  of  eighty  and  tired  of 
life,  returns  to  Neuhof,  where,  exactly  half  a  century 
before,  he  had  started  his  first  Poor  School.  Well  may 
he  exclaim  :  "  Verily  it  was  as  if  I  were  putting  an  end 
to  my  life  itself  by  this  return,  so  much  pain  did  it  give 
me". 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  "DEATH-SONG". 

After  the  storm  and  stress  of,  perhaps,  the  sternest 
fight  that  ever  man  fought  to  uphft  his  fellows  by  means 
of  education,  Pestalozzi  returned  to  his  starting  place 
once  more.  Though  he  had  in  fact  won  a  great  world 
victory  for  progress,  he  thought  he  was  defeated,  if  not 
disgraced.  Even  so  his  noble  soul  and  ardent  mind 
would  not  be  stilled.  Once  more  he  takes  up  his  pen  to 
tell  the  truth,  as  he  sees  it,  of  his  life  and  work  ;  and  to 
deliver  yet  again  the  message  he  bears.  Now,  as  ever, 
he  does  not  spare  himself,  but  freely  and  frankly  admits 
his  many  faults  and  failures :  all  he  asks  is  that  the 
truth  that  is  in  him  and  his  work  shall  be  properly 
recognised  and  appreciated. 

No  sooner  did  he  arrive  again  at  Neuhof  than  he 
began  to  write  his  Swan's  Song  (or  Death-Song).  In 
this  he  gives  a  final  statement  of  his  views  on  educa- 
tion. He  also  wrote  My  ForUmes  as  Superintendent  of 
my  Educational  Establishments  at  Burgdorf  and  Yverdon  ; 
wherein  he  gives  his  own  account  of  the  happenings 
at  these  places,  and  tries  to  show  that  Schmid  was  his 
true  friend  and  saviour.  Whilst  these  writings  are,  as 
would  be  expected,  full  of  sadness  and  despondency, 

113  8 


114  PESTALOZZI. 

they  are  b}^  no  means  the  morbid  meanderings  of  age 
and  decay.  De  Guimps  speaks  of  the  Swan's  Song  as 
"one  of  his  most  remarkable  works";  and  Raumer, 
who  was  well  qualified  to  judge,  says:  ''These  last 
writings  of  Pestalozzi  have  been  regarded  by  many  as 
the  melancholy  and  languid  outpourings  of  the  heart  of 
a  dying  old  man.  As  far  as  concerns  the  old  man's 
judgments  on  the  institution,  as  it  was  at  the  time  of 
my  stay  at  Yverdon,  I  consider  them  for  the  most  part 
highly  truthful,  and  as  affording  evidence  that  he  was 
not  deficient  in  manly  clearness  and  penetration  even 
in  his  old  age." 

But  these  two  works  are  but  a  fraction  of  his  under- 
takings in  his  last  days.  Being  short  of  means,  he  pro- 
posed to  raise  money  by  publishing  editions  of  his  work 
in  English  and  in  French.  So  Schmid  was  sent  to 
Paris  and  London  to  get  subscribers  and  arrange,  if  pos- 
sible, for  the  publication  of  his  works ;  and  even  for  a 
new  periodical  in  French.  All  this  with  a  view  to 
carrying  out  his  ever-cherished  plan  of  a  Poor  School 
at  Neuhof.  After  fifty  years'  absence  from  Neuhof,  one 
of  the  first  things  he  did  on  his  return  to  it  was  to  give 
orders  for  the  buildings  for  a  Poor  School.  Whilst 
these  orders  were  being  carried  out,  much  too  slowly 
for  his  burning  zeal,  he  constantly  went  and  taught  in 
the  village  school  at  Birr;  and  once  more  interested 
himself  in  the  affairs  of  his  old  friends  amongst  the 
peasants. 

Of  his  personal  appearance  at  this  time  we  have  an 
account  by  Henning — one  of  his  "  old  boys  " — who 
visited  him  at  Neuhof,  in  August,  1825.  ^^  says  :  "  I 
had   not   seen  him  for  thirteen    years,  and  found  him 


LAST  DAYS   AND   DEEDS.  II5 

looking  older  certainly,  but  on  the  whole  very  little 
changed.  He  was  still  active  and  strong,  simple  and 
open ;  his  face  still  wore  the  same  kindly,  plaintive 
expression ;  his  zeal  for  human  happiness,  and  especi- 
ally for  the  education  of  poor  and  little  children,  was  as 
keen  as  thirteen  years  before.  ...  In  spite  of  the  heat 
he  accompanied  me  to  Lenzburg,  and  valiantly  mounted 
the  two  or  three  hundred  steps  leading  to  the  castle. 
.  .  .  The  vivacity  of  his  speech  and  the  vigour  of  all 
his  movements  inspired  me  with  the  hope  that  the  term 
of  his  earthly  existence  was  still  far  off.  My  heart  was 
full  when  I  took  leave  of  the  kind  old  man.  I  shall 
never  forget  the  time  that  it  was  my  good  fortune  to 
spend  with  him." 

For  a  meeting  of  the  Helvetian  Society — of  which  he 
had  been  enthusiastically  elected  president  the  previous 
year — in  April,  1826,  at  Schinznach,  he  wrote  an  address 
On  Fatherland  and  Education.  In  November  of  the 
same  year  he  was  present  at  a  meeting  of  the  Society 
for  the  Promotion  of  Education,  of  Brugg,  for  which 
he  had  written  a  paper  entitled  Attempt  at  a  Sketch 
on  the  Essence  of  the  Idea  of  Elementary  Education,  and 
dealing  with  the  simplest  means  of  educating  child- 
ren from  the  cradle  to  the  sixth  year,  in  the  domestic 
circle.  The  paper  was  read  for  him  by  the  pastor  of 
Birr ;  but  afterwards  Pestalozzi  spoke  with  all  his  old 
vigour  and  passionate  zeal  for  the  education  of  the  little 
ones. 

In  July,  1826,  Pestalozzi  and  Schmid  visited  Zeller's 
school  for  orphans,  at  Beuggen,  where  a  touching 
festival  was  arranged  in  his  honour.  The  children  re- 
ceived him  with  singing ;  and  he  was  then  offered  an 

8* 


ii6 


PESTALOZZI. 


WANDERER'S  EVENING  PRAYER. 

Goethe  (1749-1832). 
Very  slowly. 


f\^0!^^i^^ 


I  I     I  r 

Thou  that    art    in    high-est    skies 


I       I 

Ev'  -  ry    pain  and  sor  -  row 


:^^ 


::\-l-:--^. 


:2^i:d=i=2fci-T-::^ 


3=^=^J=FE^=Fr=? 


iHgi 


3-= 


--J 


fr 


::l=t;=3 


33=3 


P 


P^ii^P^ 


still-ing  ;      Those  whom  dou 


mE^ 


ble      an  -  guish    tries,          Dou  -  bly 

r  r.l        I 


-P-^ 


L:^=lf^a-3i 


J=^: 


iPi^Hi^iiSI 


^P^t-^j*F 


with  Thy        sweet  -  ness 


f^m 


ss-z3Eij; 


fill  -  ing  :    Why  with  pain  and  plea  -  sure 


hea  -  ven,        Come,      oh, 

I  I 


-hrA 


come,  with    -     in      each      breast. 

,1  I  I  , 


i 


?2= 


^f"T 


THE   PASSING  OF   PESTALOZZI.  II7 

oak  wreath,  which,  however,  he  would  not  accept,  say- 
ing, while  tears  were  in  his  eyes :  **  Not  to  me,  but  to  in- 
nocence, belongs  this  wreath".  Most  appropriately — 
for  it  appeared  in  his  first  book,  Leonard  and  Gertrude — 
and  most  pathetically  so — for  it  spoke  of  peace  and  rest 
after  storm  and  strife — one  hymn  sung  by  the  children 
was  Goethe's  "  Wanderer's  Evening  Prayer".  This 
deeply  affected  Pestalozzi. 

Beside  all  these  activities  he  was  working  at  an  addi- 
tional volume  (the  fifth)  of  Leonard  and  Gertrude ;  a  new 
Manual  for  Mothers^  in  which  he  gave  them  instructions 
for  educating  a  child  up  to  its  seventh  year — a  supple- 
ment to  his  Book  for  Mothers  ;  and  a  book  of  elementary 
exercises  designed  to  teach  children  Latin  in  the  same 
way  as  they  learn  their  mother-tongue. 

Soon,  and  in  strife,  the  end  was  to  come  :  and  terribly 
sad  was  the  closing  scene.  Pestalozzi's  My  Fortunes, 
etc.,  gave  rise  to  much  newspaper  correspondence  ;  and 
it  contained  statements  which,  in  defending  Schmid, 
caused  great  pain  toNiederer.  A  friend  of  Niederer 
published  a  pamphlet  in  defence  of  him.  Pestalozzi 
had  taken  no  notice  of  the  newspaper  correspondence, 
but  when  he  saw  in  a  Zurich  paper  a  notice  of  the 
pamphlet,  with  the  remark:  "It  seems  that  Pestalozzi 
is  like  certain  animals  who  hide  at  sight  of  the  stick ; 
otherwise  he  would  reply  to  these  attacks,"  he  was 
seized  with  a  most  violent  outburst  of  indignation,  and 
exclaimed:  ''I  can  bear  this  no  longer".  He  became 
quite  ill,  and  said  to  his  doctor:  "I  feel  that  I  am 
going  to  die ;  but  I  must  live  six  weeks  longer  to 
answer  these  terrible  calumnies".  In  spite  of  his 
condition — he    suffered    also    from    an    organic    com- 


1 1 8  PESTALOZZI. 

plaint — and  his  doctor's  orders  he  insisted  upon  writ- 
ing, whenever  he  could,  till  the  pen  dropped  from  his 
hands.  So  serious  became  his  state  that  the  doctor 
ordered  his  removal  to  Brugg  so  that  he  might  be  near 
him. 

On  the  15th  of  February,  1827,  when  deep  snow 
covered  the  ground  the  poor  old  man  was  taken,  well 
wrapped  up  and  in  a  closed  sledge,  to  a  room  in 
Brugg.  The  next  day  he  had  a  violent  attack  of 
pain,  became  delirious,  and  was  unconscious  for  some 
time.  He  was  unable  to  speak  after  noon.  Very 
early  the  next  morning  he  regained  consciousness, 
and  seemed  easy  and  composed.  He  helped  to  arrange 
his  bed  and  talked  to  those  about  him  for  nearly 
an  hour.  Amongst  his  last  words  were  these :  ''  My 
children,  you  cannot  carry  out  my  work,  but  you  can 
do  good  to  those  about  you ;  you  can  give  land  to 
the  poor  to  cultivate.  As  for  me  I  am  soon  to  read 
the  book  of  truth.  I  forgive  my  enemies ;  may 
they  find  peace,  even  as  I  am  now  about  to  find  the 
peace  which  is  eternal.  I  should  have  been  glad 
to  live  six  weeks  longer  to  finish  my  writing,  and  yet  I 
thank  God  for  taking  me  away  from  this  earthly  life. 
You,  my  children,  remain  quietly  at  Neuhof,  and  look 
for  your  happiness  in  your  home."  About  seven  o'clock 
in  the  morning  he  quietly  passed  away  with  a  smile  on 
his  lips. 

When  asked  what  sort  of  a  monument  he  would  like 
he  had  said  "  a  rough  unhewn  stone,  such  as  I  myself 
have  always  been ".  Nearly  twenty  years  after  his 
death,  in  a  niche  in  the  church  wall  above  his  grave, 
was  placed  a  bust  of  him,  and  this  epitaph  : — 


HIS   EPITAPH.  119 

Here  rests 
HENRY  PESTALOZZI; 

Born  at  Zurich  on  the  12th  of  January,  174.6, 

Died  at  Brugg  on  the  lyth  of  February,  1827. 

Saviour  of  the  poor  at  Neuhof, 

Preacher  to  the  people  in  Leonard  and  Gertrude, 

Father  of  the  orphans  at  Stanz, 

Founder  of  the  new  folkschool 

in  Burgdorf  and  Munchenbuchsee, 

Educator  of  Humanity  at  Yverdon. 

Man,  Christian,  Citizen. 

Everything  for  others,  nothing  for  himself! 

Blessings  on  his  name ! 

TO  OUR  FATHER  PESTALOZZI. 

Grateful  Aargau. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

PESTALOZZI  THE  MAN. 

Carlyle  has  finely  said:  "The  history  of  what  man 
has  accompHshed  in  this  world,  is  at  bottom  the  history 
of  the  Great  Men  who  have  worked  here.  They  were 
the  leaders  of  men,  these  great  ones ;  the  modellers, 
patterns,  and  in  a  wide  sense  creators,  of  whatsoever 
the  general  mass  of  men  contrived  to  do  or  to  attain ; 
all  things  that  we  see  standing  accomplished  in  the 
world  are  properly  the  outer  material  result,  the  practi- 
cal realisation  and  embodiment,  of  thoughts  that  dwelt 
in  the  Great  Men  sent  into  the  world.  .  .  .  We  cannot 
look,  however  imperfectly,  upon  a  great  man,  without 
gaining  something  by  him.  He  is  the  living  light- 
fountain,  which  it  is  good  and  pleasant  to  be  near. 
The  light  which  enlightens,  which  has  enlightened  the 
darkness  of  the  world ;  and  this  not  as  a  kindled  lamp 
only,  but  rather  as  a  natural  luminary  shining  by  the 
gift  of  Heaven ;  a  flowing  light-fountain,  as  I  say,  of 
original  insight,  of  manhood  and  heroic  nobleness.  I 
should  say  sincerity,  a  deep,  great,  genuine  sincerity,  is 
the  first  characteristic  of  all  men  in  any  way  heroic.  .  .  . 
A  breaker  of  idols.  ...  It  is  the  property  of  every  Hero, 
in  every  time,  in  every  place  and  situation,  that  he  come 
back  to  reality;  that  he  stand  upon  things,  and  not 
shows  of  things  "  {On  Heroes  and  Hero-worship). 

130 


PUPILS     TESTIMONY.  121 

We  have  already  seen  enough  of  his  life  to  judge 
whether  Pestalozzi  has  any  claims  to  be  accounted  a 
hero  of  this  sort.  Let  us  never  cease  to  remember  that 
it  is  the  elements  of  greatness  in  a  man  which  most 
matter,  and  not  the  weaknesses  which  accompany  them, 
or  the  mistakes  made  in  giving  expression  to  them  ;  so 
long  as  the  greatness  prevails.  'Twere  better  to  have 
been  one-thousandth  part  as  good  as  Pestalozzi,  than  a 
thousand  times  better  than  the  critic  who  thinks  Pesta- 
lozzi could  not  have  been  a  great  man,  because  he 
made  many  and  great  mistakes.  There  is  not  one  of 
the  conditions  of  greatness  which  Carlyle  lays  down 
which  Pestalozzi  does  not  more  or  less  fulfil.  We, 
therefore,  acclaim  him  a  Great  Man,  a  Hero. 

Let  those  who  knew  him  bear  witness  to  the  manner 
of  man  he  was,  as  to  his  virtues.  Buss,  one  of  his 
earliest  and  faithful  helpers,  says:  ''there  was  in  his 
expression  something  so  great,  that  I  viewed  him  with 
astonishment  and  veneration.  This,  then,  was  Pesta- 
lozzi ?  His  benevolence,  the  cordial  reception  he  gave 
to  me,  a  perfect  stranger,  his  unpretending  simplicity, 
and  the  dilapidated  condition  in  which  he  stood  before 
me ;  the  whole  man,  taken  together,  impressed  me 
most  powerfully.  I  was  his  in  one  instant.  No  man 
had  ever  so  sought  my  heart ;  but  none,  likewise,  has 
ever  so  fully  won  my  confidence."  Karl  Ritter  (the 
famous  geographer),  one  of  Pestalozzi's  teacher-pupils, 
says :  "  I  have  seen  more  than  the  Paradise  of  Switzer- 
land, for  I  have  seen  Pestalozzi,  and  recognised  how 
great  his  heart  is,  and  how  great  his  genius ;  never 
have  I  been  so  filled  with  a  sense  of  the  sacredness  of 
my  vocation  and  the  dignity  of  human  nature  as  in  the 
days  I  spent  with  this  noble  man ",     Another  pupil, 


122  PESTALOZZI. 

Professor  Vulliemin,  writes  :  *'  We  all  loved  him,  for  he 
loved  us  all ;  we  loved  him  so  warmly  that  when  some 
time  passed  without  our  seeing  him,  we  were  quite 
troubled  about  it,  and  when  he  again  appeared  we  could 
not  take  our  eyes  off  him  .  .  .  him  whom  we  used  to  call 
our  Father  Pestalozzi  ".  Yet  another  writes  :  ''  I  seem 
still  to  see  this  kind  old  man  .  .  .  with  such  a  quick, 
tender  glance  in  his  eyes,  and  such  a  kind  smile  upon 
his  lips,  that  everybody  felt  attracted  to  him,  men, 
women  and  children  gladly  accepting  his  affectionate 
embraces  ". 

He  was  a  man  full  of  the  most  devoted  affection  and 
kindness.  Ramsauer  tells  us  that  when  he  was  ill 
''  Pestalozzi  reproached  himself  with  being  the  cause  ; 
he  knew  he  had  worked  me  too  much,  and  was 
anxious  to  nurse  me  himself,  as  a  father  would  nurse 
his  child  ".  Dr.  Mayo  describes  how,  when  he  was  ill, 
Pestalozzi  was  terribly  uneasy  ;  he  could  not  rest  till 
the  symptoms  declared  themselves  more  favourable. 
He  said :  '  J'ai  en  crainte,  comme  un  pauvre  diable '. 
He  comes  early  in  the  morning  to  my  bedside  ;  kisses 
my  hand  when  I  place  it  in  his ;  and  when  I  tell  him 
I  am  better,  he  is  quite  delighted  and  exclaims  '  Graces 
a  Dieu,  Graces  a  Dieu  ! '  " 

Two  or  three  incidents  of  his  life  throw  interesting 
side-lights  on  his  character.  One  day  some  of  Fellen- 
berg's  workmen  brought  to  him  a  disreputable-looking, 
raggedly  clothed  man,  whom  they  had  found  lying  in  a 
field,  half  dead  with  hunger  and  fatigue.  The  man 
turned  out  to  be  Pestalozzi,  who,  in  his  enthusiasm  for 
collecting  minerals,  had  wandered  so  far  from  home, 
and  so  loaded  his  pockets  and  handkerchief  with  his 
captures,  that  he  had  become  exhausted,  had  lost  his 


CHARACTERISTIC   INCIDENTS.  1 23 

way,  and  finally  collapsed  beside  a  ditch.  On  another 
occasion,  when  on  a  similar  errand,  he  was  seen  by  a 
policeman  wearily  dragging  himself  along  towards  the 
gates  of  Soleure,  at  evening.  Taking  him  to  be  a 
beggar,  and  suspicious  of  the  character  of  such  a  ragged 
and  unkempt  person,  the  policeman  took  him  to  the 
magistrate's  house.  Here  he  had  to  wait  a  long  time, 
for  the  magistrate  was  out.  To  the  amazement  of  the 
policeman  the  magistrate  recognised  Pestalozzi,  cordi- 
ally greeted  him  and  invited  him  to  supper. 

When  he  went  with  the  deputation  from  Yverdon  to 
petition  the  allied  sovereigns  not  to  use  the  town's 
buildings  as  hospital,  he  used  the  occasion  for  advocat- 
ing his  system.  Finding  himself  in  the  presence  of  the 
Czar  and  so  many  high  officials,  he  at  once  began  to 
address  them  on  the  education  of  the  poor,  and  the 
liberation  of  the  serfs.  So  absorbed  was  he  in  this  task 
that  he  pressed  upon  the  Emperor  until  the  latter  was 
driven  into  a  corner  of  the  room,  and  Pestalozzi  was  on 
the  point  of  actually  button-holing  him,  when  he  sud- 
denly remembered  himself.  Confusedly  muttering  an 
apology  he  attempted  to  kiss  the  Emperor's  hand,  but 
Alexander  graciously  embraced  him. 

On  one  occasion  he  determined,  though  very  ill  at  the 
time,  to  call  on  the  King  of  Prussia  (who  was  visiting 
Neuchatel),  to  thank  him  for  sending  so  many  teacher- 
students  to  Yverdon.  Ramsauer  went  with  him,  and 
relates  that :  "  During  the  journey  Pestalozzi  had 
several  fainting  fits,  so  that  I  was  obliged  to  take  him 
from  the  carriage  and  carry  him  into  a  neighbouring 
house.  I  constantly  urged  him  to  return  home.  *  Hold 
your  tongue,'  he  said ;  '  I  must  see  the  king  even  though 
it  should  cost  me  my  life.     If  I  can  bring  about  a  better 


124  PESTALOZZI. 

education  for  a  single  Prussian  child,  I  shall  be  fully 
rewarded.' " 

Once  when  he  was  ill  in  bed  with  a  sharp  attack  of 
rheumatism,  the  French  Ambassador,  Reinhardt,  called 
to  see  the  institute  at  Burgdorf.  Neither  doctor  nor 
friends  could  persuade  Pestalozzi  to  stay  in  bed.  With 
great  difficulty,  and  much  pain  to  himself,  he  was 
dressed  and  almost  carried  from  his  room.  No  sooner 
did  he  see  the  ambassador  than  he  freed  himself  from 
his  supporters,  and  began  earnestly  to  expound  his 
educational  views  to  his  visitor.  The  longer  he  talked, 
the  more  vigorous  and  active  he  became ;  so  much  so 
that  when  he  made  an  end  of  speaking,  he  had  also 
made  an  end  of  his  rheumatism. 

Dr.  Mayo  tells  how,  just  before  completing  his  seventy- 
fifth  year  :  "  A  girl  belonging  to  his  poor  school  [Clindy] 
having  died  a  few  days  ago,  he  attended  her  funeral, 
leading  the  procession  bare-headed,  though  the  snow 
was  on  the  ground  ". 

So  much  as  to  the  goodness  of  his  heart  and  will ; 
and  now  we  will  give  some  evidence  about  his  intellec- 
tual powers  and  general  character.  Baron  de  Guimps 
says  of  Pestalozzi  (at  Yverdon):  "  He  accosted  every- 
body with  gentle  kindliness.  His  conversation  was 
animated  and  clever,  full  of  imagination  and  originality, 
but  difficult  to  follow  on  account  of  his  pronunciation. 
But  he  was  never  long  the  same,  passing  in  a  moment 
from  frank,  open-hearted  gaiety  to  profound  and  even 
melancholy  meditation.  Always  absent-minded  and 
preoccupied,  he  was  a  prey  to  a  feverish  restlessness, 
and  could  never  sit  down  for  long  together ;  he  used  to 
walk  up  and  down  the  corridors  of  the  castle,  one  hand 
behind  his  back,  or  in  the  breast  of  his  coat.  .  .  .  He 


QUALITIES  OF   HEART  AND   MIND.  125 

continued  to  work  with  indefatigable  zeal  at  improv- 
ing his  '  method,'  and  making  new  applications  of  it. 
Every  morning,  as  early  as  two  o'clock,  he  called  an 
under-master  to  his  bedside  to  write  from  his  dictation. 
But  he  was  rarely  satisfied  with  his  own  work,  and 
made  continual  corrections,  often  starting  afresh." 

Ramsauer  speaks  thus  of  him  :  "  On  those  occasions 
[when  members  of  the  staff  took  coffee  with  him  in  Mrs. 
Pestalozzi's  room]  he  was  generally  very  gay  and  full  of 
wit ;  and  his  wit  was  often  brilliant,  for  whatever  he 
did,  he  did  thoroughly,  giving  himself  up  entirely  to 
the  feelings  of  the  moment.  In  the  same  half-hour  he 
would  be  extremely  happy  and  extremely  miserable, 
gentle  and  caressing  or  serious  and  severe ;  he  did 
nothing  without  enthusiasm." 

This  violent  instability  is  shown  in  an  incident  re- 
lated by  De  Guimps.  "  Pestalozzi  was  strangely  im- 
pressionable, and  when  once  possessed  by  his  favourite 
idea  of  elevating  the  lower  classes,  he  forgot  everything 
else.  Some  short  time  after  the  death  of  his  wife  [which 
caused  him  the  most  profound  grief  and  distress],  one 
of  his  old  pupils,  deeply  moved  by  his  loss,  came  to 
see  him.  After  a  few  words  on  the  painful  subject  of 
the  visit,  the  old  man  began  to  speak  of  his  new  plans 
and  new  hopes  for  the  success  of  his  method,  and  before 
long,  carried  away  by  his  illusions  and  enthusiasm,  he 
cried  excitedly :  '  I  am  swimming  in  a  sea  of  joy  ! '  " 

Professor  Vulliemin  writes :  "  He  is  quick  in  grasping 
principles,  but  is  helpless  in  matters  of  detail ;  he  pos- 
sesses the  faculty,  however,  of  putting  his  views  with 
such  force  and  clearness  that  he  has  no  difficulty  in 
getting  them  carried  out.  .  .  .  He  has  no  gift  for  guid- 
ing this  great  undertaking  [Yverdon],  and  yet  it  con- 


126  PESTALOZZI. 

tinues.  .  .  .  Even  his  speech,  which  is  neither  German 
nor  French,  is  scarcely  intelligible,  and  yet  in  every- 
thing he  is  the  soul  of  this  vast  establishment.  All  his 
words,  and  more  especially  his  religious  utterances, 
sink  deep  into  the  hearts  of  his  pupils,  who  love  and 
venerate  him  as  a  father." 

Of  his  manner  of  expounding  his  theories  De  Guimps 
says :  "  A  hundred  times  have  I  heard  the  master  him- 
self explain  his  doctrine,  and  each  time  with  a  different 
illustration.  This  profound  philosopher  had  no  love 
for  philosophical  language,  with  which  he  had  never 
been  familiar.  Nor  would  he  trust  himself  to  use 
formulas,  of  which  indeed  he  had  almost  a  dread.  His 
thought,  which  had  been  shaped  in  solitude  and  with  no 
help  from  books,  was  simply  the  outcome  of  observation 
and  reflection,  and  so  he  preferred  to  explain  his  views 
as  he  had  formed  them,  and  attached  much  more  weight 
to  concrete  facts,  particular  examples,  and  comparisons, 
than  to  abstractions  and  general  ideas." 

Dr.  Biber's  description  is  :  "  Pestalozzi  was  naturally 
endowed  with  extraordinary  powers  of  body  and  mind. 
.  .  .  His  eye  beaming  with  benevolence  and  honest 
confidence,  soon  dispelled  any  unpleasant  impressions 
which  the  ruggedness  of  his  appearance  was  calculated 
to  produce ;  while  his  wrinkled  countenance,  which  at- 
tested in  every  feature  the  existence  of  a  soul,  to  whom 
life  had  been  more  than  a  thoughtless  game,  commanded, 
with  irresistible  power,  that  reverence  which  his  figure 
could  never  have  imposed.  .  .  .  His  temper  was  cheer- 
ful ;  his  wit  ready  and  pointed,  but  without  sting.  His 
conversation  was  at  all  times  animated,  but  most  so 
when  he  entered  into  explanations  of  his  views  ;  his 
lively  gesticulation  was  then  called  in  to  assist  his  utter- 


QUALITIES   OF   HEART   AND    MIND.  12/ 

ance,  especially  when  he  spoke  French,  which  not 
being  familiar  to  him,  he  was  constantly  tormented  by  a 
vague  consciousness  of  the  inadequacy  of  his  expressions 
to  the  ideas  which  he  had  in  mind.  Such  was  the  affa- 
bility of  his  manner  that  it  was  impossible  long  to  feel  a 
stranger  in  his  presence,  while  the  native  dignity  dif- 
fused over  his  whole  being,  kept  even  the  indiscreet  at 
a  respectful  distance. 

"  He  was  an  affectionate  husband  and  a  kind  father. 
The  privations  to  which  his  enterprising  spirit,  and  his 
unbusiness-like  habits  exposed  his  family,  cost  him  many 
a  pang ;  and  much  of  the  gloom  and  bitterness  which 
assailed  him  at  different  periods,  especially  towards  the 
close  of  his  life,  is  to  be  attributed  to  the  struggle  of  his 
domestic  affections  against  the  generous  disinterested- 
ness of  his  public  character.  .  .  .  The  relation  in  which 
Pestalozzi's  character  was  most  fully  developed,  and 
appears  to  the  greatest  advantage,  is  that  in  which  he 
stood,  in  the  most  flourishing  times  of  the  institution  at 
Yverdon,  to  the  whole  family  as  their  adoptive  father, 
and  to  his  earliest  disciples  as  their  paternal  friend." 

M.  Charles  Monnard  says  of  his  intellectual  power: 
"Instead  of  the  usual  knowledge  that  any  young  man 
of  ordinary  talent  can  acquire  in  two  years,  he  under- 
stood thoroughly  what  most  masters  were  entirely 
ignorant  of :  the  mind  of  man  and  the  laws  of  its  de- 
velopment, human  affections  and  the  art  of  arousing 
and  ennobHng  them.  He  seemed  to  have  almost  an 
intuitive  insight  into  the  development  of  human  nature, 
which  indeed  he  was  never  tired  of  contemplating." 

An  almost  ridiculous  example  of  this  combination  of 
deep  insight  and  high  purpose  with  profound  ignorance 
is  given  by  Ramsauer,  in  connection  with  Pestalozzi's 


128  PESTALOZZI. 

enthusiasm  for  collecting  stones.  "  Every  fine  day  he 
went  to  hunt  for  stones,  which  was  his  chief  diversion. 
I,  too,  had  to  pick  up  stones,  although  it  seemed  very 
singular  to  me,  for  there  were  millions  of  them  and  I 
did  not  know  which  to  take.  He  did  not  understand 
anything  about  them  either,  but  he  filled  his  pockets  and 
his  handkerchief  with  them  every  day  all  the  same,  and 
carried  them  home,  though  he  never  looked  at  them  again 
after  that.  He  kept  this  hobby  all  his  life  ;  and  it  was 
hard  to  find  a  handkerchief  in  the  whole  school  of  Burg- 
dorf  which  was  not  full  of  holes  made  by  taking  pebbles 
home."  But  there  was  a  great  educational  principle 
involved,  and  out  of  such  seemingly  stupid  actions  grew 
what  we  now  know  as  nature  study,  school  journeys, 
and  object  lessons. 

Raumer  says  that  "  Niederer  saw  in  Pestalozzi  a 
man  who  had  grasped  with  instinctive  profundity  the 
subject  of  human  culture,  but  had  given  only  a  frag- 
mentary view  of  it,  and  who  could  not  control  ideas 
which,  as  it  were,  possessed  him  ".  Niederer  himself 
says:  "  In  Pestalozzi  there  was  as  much  of  the  woman 
as  of  the  man".  There  is  much  truth  in  Niederer's 
views. 

And  now  let  us  consider — for  purposes  of  proper 
criticism  (of  his  work) — some  of  his  weaknesses  and 
failings.  Here  we  shall  find  much  that  needs  careful 
consideration.  We  must  endeavour  to  see  the  man  as 
a  whole,  and  to  see  him  sanely ;  neither  lost  to  his 
weaknesses  because  of  our  admiration  of  his  great- 
nesses, nor  blind  to  his  supreme  abilities  because  of  his 
great  failings.  If  we  would  see  the  pure  jewel  we  must 
clear  away  the  dross.  We  shall  try  to  recognise  his 
faults  fully,  only  that  thereby  we  may  see  his  virtues 


SOME   FAILINGS.  1 29 

still  more  fully :  we  seek  but  to  separate  the  chaff  from 
the  wheat. 

No  one  was  more  conscious  of  Pestalozzi's  faults 
than  Pestalozzi  himself.  From  first  to  last  he  confesses 
and  deplores  them.  Of  his  first  failures,  at  Neuhof,  he 
declares :  ''The  cause  of  the  failure  of  my  undertaking 
lay  essentially  and  exclusively  in  myself,  and  in  my 
pronounced  incapacity  for  every  kind  of  undertaking 
what  requires  eminent  practical  ability.  ...  So  great, 
so  unspeakably  great,  was  the  contrast  between  what  I 
wished  to  do  and  what  I  did  and  was  able  to  do,  which 
arose  from  the  disproportion  between  my  good-natured 
zeal,  on  the  one  side,  and  my  mental  impotency  and 
unskilfulness  in  the  affairs  of  life  on  the  other." 

Writing  to  his  fiancee,  between  1767-69,  he  says : 
"Those  of  my  faults  which  appear  to  me  the  most  im- 
portant, in  relation  to  the  situation  in  which  I  may  be 
placed  in  after-life,  are  improvidence,  incautiousness, 
and  a  want  of  presence  of  mind  to  meet  unexpected 
changes  in  my  future  prospects,  whenever  they  may 
occur.  ...  I  have  other  faults,  arising  from  my  irrita- 
bility and  sensitiveness,  which  oftentimes  will  not  sub- 
mit to  my  judgment.  I  very  frequently  allow  myself  to 
run  into  excesses  in  praising  and  blaming,  in  my  likings 
and  dislikings;  I  cleave  so  strongly  to  many  things 
which  I  possess,  that  the  force  with  which  I  feel  my- 
self bound  to  them  often  exceeds  the  limits  which 
reason  assigns ;  whenever  my  country  or  my  friend  is 
unhappy,  I  am  myself  unhappy.  ...  Of  my  great,  and 
indeed  very  reprehensible,  negligence  in  all  matters  of 
etiquette,  and  generally  in  all  matters  which  are  not  in 
themselves  of  importance,  I  need  not  speak ;  any  one 
may  see  them  at  first  sight  of  me." 

9 


I30  PESTALOZZI. 

Such  a  confession  is  in  itself  a  sign  of  greatness,  for 
it  was  done  at  a  great  price,  under  the  fear  of  a  still 
greater :  "  I  love  you  so  truly  from  my  heart,  and  with 
such  fervour,  that  this  step  has  cost  me  much;  I  fear 
to  lose  you,  dear,  when  you  see  me  as  I  am  ;  I  had  often 
determined  to  be  silent  ;  at  last  I  have  conquered  my- 
self".  True  self-criticism  is  the  highest  form  of  judg- 
ment ;  and  few  men  are  able  thus  to  analyse  their  own 
nature,  and  fewer  still  have  the  noble  courage  and 
candour  for  such  a  confession. 

Again,  he  says  of  his  work  at  Burgdorf — in  many 
ways  the  most  successful  of  all  his  school-work :  "I 
must  say  here  openly  what,  during  my  years  of  mis- 
fortune, I  have  often  and  often  said  secretly  to  myself, 
that  at  the  very  first  step  I  took  in  Burgdorf  Castle  I 
was  lost.  I  was  indeed  embarking  on  a  career  that 
could  only  end  in  misfortune,  seeing  that  the  post  I  was 
to  occupy  demanded  the  very  strength  and  administra- 
tive talents  I  so  terribly  lacked."  Of  the  institute  at 
Yverdon  he  most  modestly,  yet  truly  said,  to  Professor 
Vulliemin :  "  I  cannot  say  that  it  is  I  who  have  created 
what  you  see  before  you.  Niederer,  Kriisi  and  Schmid 
would  laugh  at  me  if  I  called  myself  their  master ;  I 
am  good  neither  at  figures  nor  writing ;  I  know  nothing 
about  grammar,  mathematics,  or  any  other  science  ; 
the  most  ignorant  of  our  pupils  know  more  of  these 
things  than  I  do  ;  I  am  but  the  initiator  of  the  institute, 
and  depend  on  others  to  carry  out  my  views." 

Professor  Vulliemin  rightly  adds :  ''  He  spoke  the 
truth,  and  yet  without  him  nothing  that  is  here  would 
exist ".  Yes,  though  he  was  not  their  master,  yet  he 
was  their  Master  :  he  knew  much  of  the  soul  of  know- 
ledge though  little  of  its  forms.     He  saw  clearly,  but  he 


SOME   FAILINGS.  I3I 

could  not  express  clearly  and  cogently.  As  he  says  in 
How  Gertrude  Teaches  her  Children  :  ''  My  dear  friend,  if 
you  find  that  I  do  not  succeed  in  explaining  the  theory 
of  my  plans,  I  hope  you  will  take  the  will  for  the  deed, 
seeing  what  pains  I  am  taking.  Ever  since  the  age  of 
twenty  I  have  been  completely  unfitted  for  systematic 
metaphysics ;  and  fortunately  for  me,  the  practical 
success  of  my  plan  does  not  depend  upon  this  sort  of 
philosophy,  which  seems  to  me  so  toilsome."  And  yet 
though  this  is  true,  it  is  also  true  that  he  wrote  as  only 
a  man  of  genius  can  write,  and  was  recognised  by  the 
most  intellectual  men  of  his  day  and  generation  as  one 
of  themselves.  But  he  lacked  power  and  thoroughness 
as  a  systematic,  or  scientific,  thinker  and  writer.  Like 
most  of  the  great  pioneers  he  did  not  construct  an 
elaborate  and  finished  system,  but  set  forth,  or  rather 
revealed,  some  of  the  great  truths  and  principles  which 
must  underlie  such  a  system. 

Froebel,  who  spent  more  than  a  year  with  Pestalozzi 
at  Yverdon,  thus  speaks  of  him  and  his  work  :  "  That 
Pestalozzi  was  carried  away  and  bewildered  by  this 
great  intellectual  machine  of  his  appears  from  the  fact 
that  he  could  never  give  any  definite  account  of  his 
idea,  his  plan,  his  intention.  He  always  said,  '  Go  and 
see  for  yourself '  (very  good  for  him  who  knew  how  to 
look,  how  to  hear,  how  to  perceive) ;  '  it  works  splen- 
didly ! '  It  was  at  that  time,  indeed,  surprising  and  in- 
explicable to  me  that  Pestalozzi's  loving  character  did 
not  win  every  one's  heart  as  it  won  mine,  and  compel 
the  staff  of  teachers  to  draw  together  into  a  connected 
whole,  penetrated  with  life  and  intellectual  strength  in 
every  part.  His  morning  and  evening  addresses  were 
deeply  touching  in  their  simplicity.  .  .  . 

9  * 


132  PESTALOZZI. 

"  The  powerful,  indefinable,  stirring  and  uplifting 
effect  produced  by  Pestalozzi  when  he  spoke,  set  one's 
soul  on  fire  for  a  higher,  nobler  life,  although  he  had  not 
made  clear  or  sure  the  exact  way  towards  it,  nor  indi- 
cated the  means  whereby  to  attain  it.  ...  I  soon  saw 
that  much  was  imperfect ;  but,  notwithstanding  this,  the 
activity  which  pressed  forth  on  all  sides,  the  vigorous 
effort,  the  spiritual  endeavour  of  life  around  me,  which 
carried  me  away  with  it  as  it  did  all  other  men  who 
came  within  its  influence,  convinced  me  that  here  I 
should  presently  be  able  to  resolve  all  my  difficulties." 

This  inability  on  the  part  of  Pestalozzi  to  follow  his 
ideas  and  plans  to  successful  issues  was  pointed  out  to 
Pestalozzi  himself  by  his  friend  Lavater,  who  said  to 
him  :  ''  When  I  only  see  a  line  of  yours  without  a  mis- 
take, I  will  believe  you  capable  of  much,  very  much, 
that  you  would  like  to  be  ".  To  Pestalozzi's  wife  Lava- 
ter once  said:  "  If  I  were  a  prince,  I  would  consult 
Pestalozzi  in  everything  that  concerns  the  people  and 
the  improvement  of  their  condition,  but  I  would  never 
trust  him  with  a  farthing  of  money  ". 

Often  too  the  enthusiasm  of  his  hopes,  the  intensity 
of  his  desires,  and  the  overwhelming  conviction  of  the 
rightness  and  righteousness  of  his  work,  seem  to  have 
so  prejudiced  his  calmer  and  clearer  judgment  that  he 
believed  the  facts  to  be  other  than  they  were  ;  and  even 
went  so  far  as  to  arrange  things  so  that  other  people 
should  be  led  to  see  only  the  greatest  successes  of  his 
work.  Ramsauer  says :  "  As  many  hundred  times  in 
the  course  of  the  year  as  foreigners  visited  the  Pesta- 
lozzi institution,  so  many  hundred  times  did  Pestalozzi 
allow  himself,  in  his  enthusiasm,  to  be  deceived  by 
them,     On  the  arrival  of  every  fresh  visitor,  he  would 


SOME   FAILINGS.  1 33 

go  to  the  teachers  in  whom  he  placed  most  confidence 
and  say  to  them  :  '  This  is  an  important  personage,  who 
wants  to  become  acquainted  with  all  we  are  doing. 
Take  your  best  pupils  and  their  analysis-books  (copy- 
books in  which  the  lessons  were  written  out)  and  show 
him  what  we  can  do  and  what  we  wish  to  do  '.  Hun- 
dreds and  hundreds  of  times  there  came  to  the  institu- 
tion silly,  curious  and  often  totally  uneducated  persons, 
who  came  because  it  was  the  '  fashion '.  On  their 
account,  we  usualty  had  to  interrupt  the  class  instruc- 
tion and  hold  a  kind  of  examination.  .  .  . 

"  In  1814,  the  aged  Prince  Esterhazy  came.  Pesta- 
lozzi  ran  all  over  the  house,  calling  out :  '  Ramsauer, 
Ramsauer,  where  are  you  ?  Come  directly  with  your 
best  pupils  to  the  Maison  Rouge  (the  hotel  where  the 
Prince  was).  He  is  a  person  of  the  highest  importance 
and  of  infinite  wealth  ;  he  has  thousands  of  bond-slaves 
in  Hungary  and  Austria.  He  is  certain  to  build  schools 
and  set  free  his  slaves,  if  he  is  made  to  take  an  interest 
in  the  matter.'  I  took  about  fifteen  pupils  to  the  hotel. 
Pestalozzi  introduced  me  to  the  Prince  with  these  words  : 
*  This  is  the  teacher  of  these  scholars,  a  young  man  who 
fifteen  years  ago  migrated  with  other  poor  children  from 
the  canton  of  Appenzell  and  came  to  me.  But  he  re- 
ceived an  elementary  education,  according  to  his  indi- 
vidual aptitudes,  without  let  or  hindrance.  Now  he  is 
himself  a  teacher.  Thus  you  see  that  there  is  as  much 
ability  in  the  poor  as  in  the  richest,  frequently  more ; 
but  in  the  former  it  is  seldom  developed,  and  even  then 
not  methodically.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  the  im- 
provement of  the  people's  schools  is  so  highly  import- 
ant. But  he  will  show  you  everything  we  do  better  than 
I  could.     I  will,  therefore,  leave  you  for  the  present.' 


134  PESTALOZZl. 

"  I  now  examined  the  pupils,  taught,  explained  and 
bawled,  in  my  zeal,  till  I  was  quite  hoarse,  believing 
that  the  Prince  was  thoroughly  convinced  about  every- 
thing. At  the  end  of  an  hour  Pestalozzi  returned. 
The  Prince  expressed  his  pleasure  at  what  he  had  seen. 
He  then  took  leave,  and  Pestalozzi,  standing  on  the 
steps  of  the  hotel,  said :  '  He  is  quite  convinced,  quite 
convinced,  and  will  certainly  estabhsh  schools  on  his 
Hungarian  estates  '. 

"  When  we  had  descended  the  stairs,  Pestalozzi  said  : 
'  Whatever  ails  my  arm  ?  It  is  so  painful.  Why,  see  ! 
it  is  quite  swollen  ;  I  can't  bend  it  ! '  And  in  truth  his 
wide  sleeve  was  now  too  small  for  his  arm.  I  looked  at 
the  key  of  the  house-door  of  the  Maison  Rouge  and  said 
to  Pestalozzi :  '  Look  here  ;  you  struck  yourself  against 
this  key  when  we  were  going  to  the  Prince  an  hour  ago  '. 
On  closer  observation  it  appeared  that  Pestalozzi  had 
actually  bent  the  key  by  hitting  his  elbow  against  it. 
In  the  first  hour  afterwards  he  had  not  noticed  the 
pain,  for  the  excess  of  his  zeal  and  his  joy." 

It  is  impossible  to  deny  that,  though  due  to  the  best 
possible  motives,  there  is  much  that  is  misleading  and 
mistaken  in  such  methods  of  self-advertisement.  They 
savour  too  much  of  "  tricks  of  the  trade  ".  It  is  to  such 
exhibitions  that  Professor  Vulliemin  refers  as  "  charla- 
tanism "  (see  p.  97).  Although  Pestalozzi  did  such 
things  in  the  excitement  of  the  moment,  so  to  say,  yet 
in  his  calmer  moods  he  recognised  that  he  had  mis- 
represented matters ;  frankly  confessed  his  fault,  and 
corrected  his  misrepresentations.  A  good  example  of 
this  is  seen  in  connection  with  the  Report  to  Parents 
which  was  published  as  a  reply  to  the  attacks  on  the 
institute  at  Yverdon.    In  this  everything  and  everybody 


SOME  FAILINGS.  I35 

are  spoken  of  as  though  all  was  perfection  and  delight. 
Afterwards  Pestalozzi  admitted  that  ''  what  is  here 
said  ...  is  altogether  a  consequence  of  the  great  de- 
lusion under  which  we  lay  at  that  period,  namely,  that 
all  those  things  in  regard  to  which  we  had  strong  in- 
tentions and  some  clear  ideas,  were  really  as  they  ought 
to  have  been,  and  as  we  should  have  liked  to  make 
them.  .  .  .  Neither  did  we  perceive  the  weeds  at  that 
time ;  indeed,  as  we  then  lived,  thought,  acted  and 
dreamt,  it  was  impossible  that  we  should  perceive  them." 

On  this  element  in  Pestalozzi's  character  Raumer 
remarks:  "The  source  of  the  internal  contradiction 
which  runs  through  the  life  of  Pestalozzi  was,  as  we 
saw  from  his  own  confessions,  the  fact  that,  in  spite  of 
his  grand  ideal,  which  comprehended  the  whole  human 
race,  he  did  not  possess  the  ability  and  skill  requisite 
for  conducting  the  smallest  village  school.  His  highly 
active  imagination  led  him  to  consider  and  describe  as 
actually  existing  in  the  institution  whatever  he  hoped 
sooner  or  later  to  see  realised.  His  hopeful  spirit  fore- 
saw future  development  in  what  was  already  accom- 
plished, and  expected  that  others  would  benevolently 
do  the  same.  This  bold  assumption  had  an  effect  on 
many,  especially  on  the  teachers  of  the  institution. 
This  appears  to  explain  how,  in  the  report  on  the  insti- 
tution, so  much  could  be  said  bond  fide  which  a  sober 
spectator  was  bound  to  pronounce  untrue. 

"But  this  self-delusion  is  never  of  long  duration; 
the  period  of  overstrung  enthusiasm  is  followed  by  one 
of  hopelessness  and  dejection.  The  heart  of  man  is 
indeed  an  alternately  proud  and  dejected  thing  !  Such 
an  ebb  and  flow  of  lofty  enthusiasm  and  utter  despair 
pervades  the  entire  life  of  Pestalozzi." 


1 36  PESTALOZZI. 

It  would  almost  seem  that  Pestalozzi's  personal  neglect 
and  disorder  was  a  reflection  of  the  want  of  order  and 
finish  in  the  affairs  of  his  mind.  There  is  no  doubt 
that  the  former  was  very  marked.  Raumer  thus  speaks 
of  his  first  sight  of  Pestalozzi :  "  He  was  dressed  in  the 
most  negligent  manner  :  he  had  on  an  old  grey  over- 
coat, no  waistcoat,  a  pair  of  breeches,  and  stockings 
hanging  down  over  his  slippers  ;  his  coarse  bushy  black 
hair  uncombed  and  frightful.  His  brow  was  deeply 
furrowed,  his  dark  brown  eyes  were  now  soft  and  mild, 
now  full  of  fire.  You  hardly  noticed  that  the  old  man, 
so  full  of  geniality,  was  ugly ;  you  read  in  his  singular 
features  long  continued  suffering  and  great  hopes." 

Ramsauer  in  describing  his  first  day  and  lesson  in 
the  school  at  Burgdorf  tells  how  Pestalozzi  "  kept  on 
reading  out  sentences  without  halting  for  a  moment. 
As  I  did  not  understand  a  bit  of  what  was  going  on, 
when  I  heard  the  word  '  monkey,  monkey,'  come  every 
time  at  the  end  of  a  sentence,  and  as  Pestalozzi,  who 
was  very  ugly,  ran  about  the  room  as  if  he  was  wild, 
without  a  coat,  and  without  a  neck-cloth,  his  long  shirt- 
sleeves hanging  down  over  his  arms  and  hands,  which 
swung  negligently  about,  I  was  seized  with  real  terror, 
and  might  soon  have  believed  that  he  himself  was  a 
monkey." 

Professor  Vulliemin  thus  describes  him:  "Imagine 
.  .  .  a  very  ugly  man  with  rough  bristling  hair,  his  face 
scarred  with  small-pox  and  covered  with  freckles,  an 
untidy  beard,  no  neck-tie,  his  breeches  not  properly 
buttoned  and  coming  down  to  his  stockings,  which  in 
their  turn  descended  on  to  his  great  thick  shoes ;  fancy 
him  panting  and  jerking  as  he  walked  ".  Buss  speaks 
of  "his  stockings  hanging  down  about  his  heels,  and 


PERSONAL  APPEARANCE   AND   HABITS.  1 37 

his  coat  covered  with  dust.  His  whole  appearance  was 
so  miserable  that  I  was  inclined  to  pity  him." 

Though  affectionate  and  ordinarily  of  a  genial  and 
cheerful  temper  he  was  at  times  uncertain  and  violent. 
Ramsauer  states  that  "  often  when  the  masters  had 
done  something  to  displease  him,  Pestalozzi  would  fly 
into  a  passion  and  angrily  leave  the  room,  slamming 
the  door  as  if  he  would  break  it.  But  if  at  that 
moment  he  happened  to  meet  a  young  pupil,  he  would 
instantly  grow  calm,  and  after  kissing  the  boy,  return 
to  the  room,  exclaiming  :  '  I  beg  your  pardon  !  Forgive 
my  violence  !  I  was  mad  !  '  "  '  Baron  de  Guimps  writes : 
"  He  used  to  appear  every  day  in  the  middle  of  the 
lessons.  If  the  teaching  satisfied  him  his  face  would 
become  radiant  with  pleasure,  he  would  caress  the 
children  and  say  a  few  pleasant  words  to  them ;  but  if, 
on  the  other  hand,  he  was  not  satisfied  he  would 
angrily  leave  the  room  at  once,  slamming  the  door  be- 
hind him." 

M.  Soyaux  says  of  Pestalozzi :  *'  It  was  only  neces- 
sary to  see  this  man  to  have  the  best  opinion  of 
him ;  he  is  always  in  deep  thought :  he  discovers  more 
in  himself  than  from  the  outside  world,  more  in  the 
world  of  thought  than  in  the  world  of  things.  A  spirit 
of  ceaseless  activity,  an  inner  impetus,  sometimes 
drives  him  from  one  room  to  another,  from  one  colleague 
to  another.  .  .  .  Sometimes  he  passes  whole  days  in  his 
own  room,  and  spends  his  time  in  meditation  and  writ- 
ing, wholly  forgetful  of  his  person  and  his  affairs.  One 
can  begin  a  conversation  with  him  easily  enough,  but 
it  is  not  often  that  one  can  keep  him  to  one  subject,  and 
get  him  to  discuss  it  thoroughly.  He  merely  breaks 
the  current  of  his  own  thoughts  for  a  few  minutes,  says 


138  PESTALOZZI. 

a  few  friendly  words,  and  then  draws  back  into  his 
shell. 

"  When,  however,  one  can  get  him  to  notice  well- 
grounded  objections  and  doubts  he  becomes  keen  and 
talkative.  He  speaks  fluently  and  to  the  point,  in  an 
energetic  and  definite  way.  Contradiction  does  not 
irritate  him,  and  has  seldom  any  effect  other  than 
making  him  more  convinced  than  ever  of  the  rightness 
of  his  opinions.  His  heart  is  most  affectionate  and 
friendly.  .  .  .  He  shrinks  from  no  sacrifice  if  the  end 
is  good  and  noble.  He  carries  his  forgetfulness  of  his 
own  and  his  family's  interests  too  far — he  takes  in  too 
many  pupils  free  of  charge. 

"The  firmness  and  independence  of  his  mind  show 
themselves  in  his  personal  appearance.  .  .  .  Unused  to 
the  usages  of  European  society,  he  freely  follows  the 
natural  impulses  of  his  heart  and  mind.  He  is  quiet, 
sincere,  earnest,  modestly  firm,  lively  without  being 
carried  away  by  physical  impulses,  sympathetically  at- 
tentive, but  lacking  in  refinement  because  uninfluenced 
in  his  words  and  actions  by  outside  opinions.  As  he 
has  not  been  educated  by  men,  he  does  not  know  how 
to  exert  an  active  influence  on  them.  He  is  a  thinker 
rather  than  an  educator." 

We  will  take  one  more  glimpse  of  the  whole  man, 
and  this  through  the  eyes  of  Dr.  Mayo — an  English 
clergyman  who  was  chaplain  to  the  English  children  at 
Yverdon — who  was  three  years  at  the  institute  on  terms 
of  intimacy  and  confidence  with  Pestalozzi,  and  thus 
writes  of  him  in  a  private  letter  to  a  friend  :  "  Pestalozzi 
completes  this  day  his  seventy-sixth  year.  His  grey  hair, 
his  careworn  countenance,  his  hollow  eye,  and  bent  figure 
proclaim  that  many  days,  and  those  days  of  trouble. 


PERSONAL  APPEARANCE   AND    HABITS,  1 39 

have  passed  over  his  head.  His  heart,  however,  seems 
still  young ;  the  same  warm  and  active  benevolence, 
the  same  unconquerable  hope,  the  same  undoubting 
confidence,  the  same  generous  self-abandonment  animate 
it  now,  that  have  led  to  the  many  sacrifices  and  have 
supported  him  under  the  many  difficulties  and  trials  of 
his  eventful  life. 

"  In  a  thousand  little  traits  of  character,  which  un- 
consciously escape  him,  I  read  the  confirmation  of  his 
history.  It  is  an  affecting  sight,  when  the  venerable  ob- 
ject of  the  admiration  of  emperors  and  princes  appears 
in  the  midst  of  his  adopted  children.  Rich  and  poor, 
natives  and  foreigners  share  alike  his  paternal  caress, 
and  regard  him  with  the  same  fearless  attachment. 
From  the  sacrifice  of  time,  property  and  health,  for  the 
benefit  of  a  people  who  knew  not  how  to  value  his 
merit,  to  the  picking  up  a  child's  plaything,  or  the 
soothing  of  an  infant's  sorrow,  Pestalozzi  is  ever  prompt 
to  obey  the  call  of  humanity  and  kindness.  The  senti- 
ment of  love  reigns  so  powerfully  in  his  heart,  that  acts 
of  the  highest  benevolence,  or  of  the  most  condescend- 
ing good  nature  seem  to  require  no  effort,  but  appear 
the  spontaneous  manifestation  of  one  over-ruling  prin- 
ciple. .  .  . 

"  Though  honoured  with  the  most  flattering  testi- 
monies of  esteem  and  approbation  by  courts  and  uni- 
versities, Pestalozzi  is  the  most  modest  and  unassuming 
of  men.  To  all  who  take  an  interest  in  his  method  of 
education  he  addresses  himself  in  the  most  touching 
expressions  of  gratitude,  as  if  they  conferred  the  greatest 
obligation  by  examining  into  the  truth  of  his  opinions 
and  the  utility  of  his  plans.  ...  *  Examine  my  method  ; 
adopt  what  you  find  to  be  good  and  reject  what  you 


I40  PESTALOZZI. 

cannot  approve.  We  are  doing  something  here  towards 
the  execution  of  my  principles  of  education,  but  what 
we  do  is  still  very  imperfect.'  .  .  . 

"  You  cannot  conceive  the  interest  which  Pestalozzi 
awakens  or  the  influence  which  he  insensibly  acquires. 
All  the  little  barriers,  behind  which  reserve  or  suspicion 
teach  us  to  entrench  ourselves,  fall  before  the  child- 
like simplicity,  the  unaffected  humility  and  feminine 
tenderness  of  his  heart.  Self-interest  is  shamed  into 
silence,  while  we  listen  to  the  aspirations  of  his  bound- 
less benevolence ;  and  if  one  spark  of  generous  feeling 
glows  in  the  bosom,  the  elevated  enthusiasm  of  his 
character  must  blow  it  into  a  flame.  The  powers  of  his 
original  mind  serve  to  maintain  the  interest  which  his 
character  first  excites.  In  conversation,  however,  he 
is  most  frequently  a  listener.  Towards  those  with  whom 
he  lives  in  perfect  intimacy  he  sometimes  indulges  in  a 
playful  but  forcible  raillery  ;  careful  meanwhile  to  avoid 
giving  the  slightest  pain  or  uneasiness.  He  is  peculiarly 
successful  in  portraying  some  great  character  by  two 
or  three  masterly  strokes ;  in  marking  either  in  retro- 
spect, or  by  anticipation,  the  influence  of  political  events 
on  national  character,  or  national  prosperity  ;  in  charac- 
terising the  different  methods  of  education  in  vogue ;  or 
in  tracing  the  difference  between  his  views  and  those 
of  certain  philosophers  with  which  they  have  been 
confounded. 

''There  is  nothing  studied  about  him.  Often  as  I 
have  heard  him  enter  on  the  subject  of  his  system  for 
the  information  of  strangers,  I  do  not  recollect  him  to 
have  taken  it  up  twice  from  the  same  point  of  view. 
When  we  have  conversed  on  these  subjects,  I  have 
sometimes  thought   his  ideas  wild  and  his  views  im- 


''TAKE   HIM   FOR  ALL   IN   ALL."  I41 

practicable.  The  faint  and  misty  but  still  beautiful  light 
which  emanated  from  his  mind  I  have  regarded  with  a 
feeling  of  melancholy  delight,  for  it  seemed  to  indicate 
that  the  sun  of  his  genius  had  set.  Still,  I  have  been 
unable  to  dismiss  from  my  mind  his  loose  and  ill-digested 
hints.  After  frequent  reconsideration  of  them  they  have 
appeared  more  clear  and  more  feasible ;  and  I  have 
subsequently  traced  their  influence  on  the  opinions 
I  have  adopted  and  on  the  plans  of  instruction  which  I 
have  pursued. 

"  Pestalozzi  once  known  is  never  forgotten.  I  have 
talked  with  men  who  have  not  seen  him  for  years,  or 
whom  the  current  of  events  has  separated  from  all  inter- 
course with  him.  His  honoured  image  lives  as  fresh  in 
their  memory  as  if  their  communication  had  never  been 
suspended  or  broken.  Anecdotes  illustrating  his  benevo- 
lence are  current  in  their  families,  and  their  children 
anticipate  the  delight  of  one  day  receiving  the  parental 
caress  of  good  Father  Pestalozzi.  Many  of  my  own 
countrymen  who  have  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  his 
society  will,  I  am  sure,  carry  the  remembrance  of  him 
to  their  graves." 


CHAPTER  IX. 

PESTALOZZI  THE  THINKER. 

Starting  with  the  fact  that  Pestalozzi  was  gifted  with 
a  mind  which  by  its  native  power  could  pierce  more 
deeply,  fully  and  independently  into  the  inner  meaning 
and  significance  of  things  and  ideas  than  the  minds  of 
other  men — in  a  word,  that  he  was  a  genius — we  can 
usefully  consider  the  influences  which  helped  to  develop 
his  mind  in  the  direction  which  it  actually  took,  and  the 
work  it  did.  There  is  not  the  least  doubt  but  that  the 
influence  of  his  mother,  and  the  fact  that  he  was 
entirely  under  the  influence  of  women  during  his  early 
years,  had  a  very  important  and  abiding  effect  upon  him. 
Again,  his  own  wife,  and  the  faithful  and  devoted  Eliza- 
beth Naef,  were  the  only  persons  who  really  believed  in 
and  supported  him  in  his  most  terrible  time  of  failure 
and  want  at  Neuhof.  No  wonder,  therefore,  that  Eliza- 
beth was  immortalised  as  Gertrude  ;  and  that  the  woman 
and  the  mother  are  regarded  by  Pestalozzi  as  the  very 
corner-stone  of  education  and  the  foundations  of  society. 
Education  must  be  based  upon  the  mother's  influence 
and  work ;  and,  hence,  it  must  be  domestic  and  industrial 
in  the  earliest  stages. 

His  own  reading  and  study  at  school  and  college 
would  bring  him  into  touch  with  at  least  some  of  the 
ideas  of  the  great  classical  writers  on  education  and 

J  43 


EARLY  DETERMINING   INFLUENCES.  I43 

government.  In  his  work  On  the  Idea  of  Elementary 
Education  he  discusses  the  Greek  ideal  of  education, 
pointing  out  that  the  Greeks  based  their  system  on  the 
idea  of  developing  the  human  faculties  by  human  ac- 
tivities rather  than  knowledge  giving ;  that  they  gave 
general  education  before  special  training  for  work  ^ 
and  that  their  method  of  intellectual  education  is  the 
most  perfect  model  ever  given  to  the  world.  In  How 
Gertrude  Teaches  her  Children  he  deals  with  the  Socratic 
method  of  teaching,  which  he  considers  unsuitable  for 
very  young  children,  because  it  makes  too  great  de- 
mands on  the  reasoning  powers.  In  his  study  of  law 
and  politics  he  would  deal  more  especially  with  prin- 
ciples of  government,  which  would  necessarily  involve 
some  consideration  of  systems  of  education.  This  was 
especially Jikely  to  be  the  case  under  such  a  man  as 
Professor  Bodmer,  one  of  the  ablest  men  of  his  day  and 
a  foremost  reformer. 

We  have  already  seen  his  own  statement  of  the  in- 
fluence of  Rousseau's  works  on  his  mind  and  heart. 
His  whole  conception  of  education  was  very  largely  and 
deeply  influenced,  and  probably  moulded,  by  Rousseau's 
views.  It  is  more  than  likely  that  in  the  course  of  his 
reading  he  would  become  acquainted  with  the  ideas,  if 
not  the  writings,  of  Locke  and  Hobbes.  His  Inquiry 
into  the  Course  of  Nature  in  the  development  of  the  Human 
Race  seems  to  suggest  this  very  clearly  and  strongly. 
The  essays  in  which  he  and  his  fellow  collegians 
shared  at  the  meetings  of  the  Helvetic  Society  would 
all  help  in  this  direction,  for  Professor  Bodmer  was  the 
founder  of  it,  and  the  subjects  dealt  with  were  history, 
education,  poHtics  and  ethics.  The  national  work 
done  by  this  society  would,  of  course,  be  well  known  to 


144  PESTALOZZI. 

Pestalozzi,  and  would  in  some  measure  guide  and  form 
his  ideas  on  education. 

Pestalozzi  was  a  truly  scientific  thinker  and  worker, 
to  a  considerable  extent ;  not  in  a  strict,  systematic 
and  thorough  way,  but  in  that  he  made  a  very  consider- 
able use  of  real  observation  and  experiment — as  far  as 
his  wayward  nature  would  allow.  He  might  almost  be 
said  to  be  the  first  who  began  Child-Study,  from  the 
educational  point  of  view.  His  very  first  attempts  at 
practical  teaching  were  made,  as  we  have  seen,  in  the 
upbringing  of  his  own  son.  To  further  illustrate  this 
we  will  give  one  or  two  more  extracts  from  the  diary  in 
which  he  records  his  efforts,  results  and  reflections — so 
extremely  interesting  and  instructive  :  "  When  the  child 
knows  the  signs  [names]  before  learning  to  know  the 
things  they  represent,  and  especially  when  he  connects 
wrong  ideas  with  them,  our  daily  lessons  and  conversa- 
tion only  strengthen  and  increase  his  mistakes,  and  force 
him  still  further  along  the  path  of  error  without  our 
even  suspecting  it.  .  .  . 

*'  In  the  matter  of  education  I  am  generally  very 
eager  to  get  to  know  the  ideas  of  those  who  have  been 
brought  up  quite  naturally  and  without  restraint :  who 
have  been  taught  by  life  itself  and  not  by  lessons.  .  .  . 
Do  not  press  your  own  knowledge  too  much  upon  the 
child,  rather  let  truth  itself  speak  to  him :  never  tire  of 
putting  before  his  eyes  whatever  is  likely  to  instruct 
him  or  help  his  development."  In  fact,  we  find  the 
foundations  of  most  of  his  principles  in  these  notes. 

At  Stanz  his  mind  is  ever  busy  watching  the  effects 
of  his  methods  upon  the  children  and  drawing  conclu- 
sions therefrom  ;  and  these  he  set  down  in  writing  in  a 
letter  sent  from  Gurnigel — where  he  had  gone  to  re- 


SOME   EARLY  EXPERIMENTS.  I45 

cruit  his  health,  immediately  on  leaving  Stanz — to  his 
friend  Gessner.  At  Burgdorf  he  continued  this  work  of 
observation  and  reflection.  He  writes  thus  about  his 
class-work  in  school :  "  I  was  every  moment  confronted 
with  facts  which  threw  increasing  light  on  the  physical 
and  mechanical  laws  by  which  our  minds  are  enabled 
to  receive  and  retain  external  impressions.  Every  day 
I  strove  more  and  more  to  conform  to  these  laws  in  my 
teaching,  although  I  did  not  thoroughly  understand  the 
principle  upon  which  they  were  based  till  last  summer." 
Here  also  he  did  some  individual  child-study.  He 
writes :  ''A  mother  full  of  interest  for  the  education  of 
her  child,  entrusted  me  with  the  instruction  of  her  little 
boy,  then  hardly  three  years  old.  I  saw  him,  for  some 
time,  an  hour  every  day ;  and  with  him,  too,  I  was 
merely,  as  it  were,  feeling  the  pulse  of  the  method :  I 
tried  to  convert  letters,  figures,  and  whatever  else  was 
at  hand,  into  means  of  instruction  ;  that  is  to  say,  I  led 
him  to  form,  concerning  every  object,  distinct  notions, 
and  to  express  these  notions  clearly  in  language.  .  .  . 
It  threw  a  good  deal  of  light  upon  the  means  of  enliven- 
ing the  child's  faculties,  and  inducing  him  to  independ- 
ent exertion  for  the  preservation  and  increase  of  his 
powers.  .  .  . 

"  The  experiment  I  made  with  this  boy  could  not  be 
decisive  as  to  the  earliest  beginning  of  instruction ;  for 
this  reason,  that  he  had  already  been  allowed  to  pass  in 
comparative  inactivity  the  three  first  years  of  his  life ; 
a  period  during  which,  I  am  convinced,  nature  urges 
upon  the  child's  consciousness  an  immense  variety  of 
objects"  {How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

Through  these  observations  and  experiments  he  was 
led   to   modify  his   ideas   and  methods  from   time   to 

10 


146  PESTALOZZI. 

time.  Thus  in  teaching  writing  at  Burgdorf,  he  says : 
"  Instead  of  getting  the  children  to  form  letters  with  their 
pencils,  as  I  had  done  at  Stanz,  I  now  gave  them  angles, 
squares,  straight  lines  and  curves  to  draw.  During 
these  endeavours,  the  idea  of  making  an  alphabet  of 
forms  [see  p.  218]  was  gradually  developed  in  me.  I 
had  not,  however,  at  first,  a  very  distinct  notion  of  it 
myself,  but  in  proportion  as  the  subject  emerged  in  my 
mind  from  its  obscurity,  my  conviction  of  its  importance 
for  the  whole  of  my  proposed  method  of  instruction  in- 
creased. It  was  a  long  time  before  I  saw  quite  clearly 
into  it ;  my  progress  was  inconceivably  slow.  I  had 
for  several  months,  already,  been  engaged  in  the  attempt 
to  resolve  the  different  means  of  instruction  into  their 
elements,  and  I  had  taken  great  trouble  to  reduce  them 
to  their  greatest  simplicity.  Still  I  could  not  see  their 
inter-connection ;  or  at  any  rate,  I  had  not  a  clear  con- 
sciousness ,of  it,  though  I  felt  that  I  was  advancing 
every  hour,  and  that  with  rapid  strides  "  {How  Ger- 
trude Teaches). 

M.  Tobler  has  this  reference  to  Pestalozzi's  experi- 
menting :  ''  I  saw  that  he  attached  no  value  to  the  de- 
tails of  his  experiments,  but  tried  many  of  them  with  a 
view  to  throw  them  aside  again,  as  soon  as  they  should 
have  answered  their  temporary  purpose.  With  many 
of  them  he  had  no  other  object  than  to  increase  the  in- 
ternal power  of  the  children,  and  to  obtain  for  himself 
further  information  concerning  the  fundamental  prin- 
ciples on  which  all  his  proceedings  rested." 

M.  Fischer,  in  a  letter  to  Steinmuller  (editor  of  Swiss 
Schoolmasters'  Library),  20th  December,  1799,  writes  : 
''It  is  almost  incredible  how  indefatigably  he  makes 
experiments ;  and  inasmuch  as  he  philosophises  more 


HIS   SEARCH   FOR   FUNDAMENTALS.  I47 

after  the  experiments  than  before  them — except  as  to  a 
few  guiding  principles — he  must  needs  increase  them  ; 
but  the  results  gain  in  certainty  thereby.  ...  In  this 
way  not  only  are  many  parts  of  the  methods  hitherto  in 
use  subjected  to  criticism,  but  also  many  forms  and  de- 
tails of  methods  are  discovered  and  at  once  adapted  to 
the  new  point  of  departure." 

Dr.  Mayo  gives  us  an  account  of  the  manner  in 
which  Pestalozzi  would  seize  upon,  and  make  use  of, 
incidents  in  school  work  as  the  basis  of  principle  and 
practice.  "  It  was  proposed  to  bring  education  more  in 
contact  with  the  child's  own  experience  and  observation, 
and  to  find  in  him  the  first  link  in  the  chain  of  his  in- 
struction. In  the  execution  of  this  plan,  a  series  of 
engravings  was  provided,  representing  those  objects 
which  are  familiar  to  children ;  and  the  lessons  con- 
sisted in  naming  their  parts,  describing  their  structure 
and  use.  One  day,  however,  the  master  having  pre- 
sented to  his  class  the  engraving  of  a  ladder,  a  lively 
little  boy  exclaimed  :  '  But  there  is  a  real  ladder  in  the 
courtyard ;  why  not  talk  about  it  rather  than  the  pic- 
ture ! '  '  The  engraving  is  here,'  said  the  master,  '  and 
it  is  more  convenient  to  talk  about  what  is  before  your 
eyes  than  to  go  into  the  courtyard  to  talk  about  the 
other.'  The  boy's  observation,  thus  eluded,  was  for  that 
time  disregarded. 

*'  Soon  after,  the  engraving  of  a  window  formed  the 
subject  of  examination;  'But  why,'  exclaimed  the 
same  little  objector,  'talk  of  this  picture  of  a  window, 
when  there  is  a  real  window  in  the  room,  and  there  is 
no  need  to  go  into  the  courtyard  for  it  ? '  Again  the 
remark  was  silenced,  but  in  the  evening  both  circum- 
stances were  mentioned  to  Pestalozzi.      '  The  boy  is 

10  * 


148  PESTALOZZI. 

right,'  said  he;  *the  reality  is  better  than  the  counter- 
feit ;  put  away  the  engravings,  and  let  the  class  be  in- 
structed by  means  of  real  objects.'  The  plan  was 
adopted."  Herein  is  also  the  evolution  of  the  Object 
Lesson. 

The  foregoing  will  show  that  Pestalozzi  was  not 
ignorant  of  the  methods  of  scientific  inquiry,  and  that 
he  did  not  fail  to  make  use  of  them.  He  had  studied 
natural  history  during  his  student  days  at  Zurich  ;  and 
the  researches  which  he,  for  several  years,  pursued  be- 
fore writing  his  treatise  On  Legislation  and  Infanticide,  the 
Inquiry,  etc.,  and  Essay  on  the  Causes  of  the  French  Re- 
volution, must  all  have  disciplined  him,  to  some  extent, 
for  his  educational  investigations  and  speculations. 
But,  after  all,  his  supreme  qualification  for  the  work 
he  did  was  just  his  genius.  To  genius  it  would  seem, 
in  some  cases,  that  power  is  given  to  create  a  world  of 
ideas  from  what  had  previously  been  almost  a  formless 
void ;  whilst  it  is  always  its  privilege  to  make  actual 
what  other  men  may  not  yet  have  dreamed  to  be  even 
possible.  Genius  is  the  greatest  of  all  influences  in 
human  affairs,  and,  therefore,  speaking  broadly,  needs 
less  influencing  from  other  forces — and,  indeed,  is  least 
open  to  the  action  of  ordinary  influences,  because  it  is 
so  much  superior  to  them.  The  pity  is  that  in  the  case 
of  Pestalozzi  the  expression  of  his  great  thoughts  is 
sometimes  so  indistinct  and  so  involved  that  it  is  diffi- 
cult, if  not  impossible,  to  say  exactly  what  he  means. 
Yet  there  is  an  overwhelming  force  of  truth  and  clear- 
ness in  most  of  his  work,  and  it  is  quite  possible  for  his 
disciples  to  construct  a  sound  and  connected  body  of 
principles  from  what  he  has  written ;  and  we  now  pro- 
ceed to  make  an  attempt  to  do  something  of  this  sort. 


EDUCATION   AND   SOCIAL  DEVELOPMENT.         149 

I.  Education  as  the  Means  of  Social  Development. 

We  must  always  remember  that  Pestalozzi  was,  first 
and  last,  a  social  and  political  reformer,  and  that  he 
regarded  the  education  of  the  poorer  classes  as  the  only 
sure  means  to  bring  about  sound  social  reform.  "  Ele- 
mentary education  alone  can  regenerate  and  save 
society,"  he  said.  Again,  he  writes:  **  Let  us  hope 
that  those  who  govern  humanity  will  come  to  the  con- 
viction that  the  betterment  of  the  human  race  is  their 
most  important,  indeed  their  sole,  concern.  I  am  con- 
vinced that,  sooner  or  later,  all  that  I  wish  for  the 
education  of  the  people  will  be  realised."  As  a  boy  he 
got  to  know,  through  his  visits  to  his  uncle  and  grand- 
father, of  the  hard  lot  of  the  country  people,  and  used 
to  say :  "  When  I  am  big,  I  shall  stand  up  for  the 
peasants ;  they  have  a  right  to  the  same  advantages  as 
the  townspeople  ".  When  a  student  he  had  written,  in 
Der  Erinnerer :  "  I  wish  that  all  who  work  with  their 
hands,  all  who  live  hard-working,  frugal  and  self- 
supporting  lives,  should  be  looked  upon  as  the  pillars 
of  our  liberty,  and  be  much  more  esteemed  amongst  us  ". 
During  this  period  he  also  published  an  essay  in  which 
he  tells  the  history  of  Agis,  King  of  Sparta,  who  en- 
deavoured to  reform  his  people.  Although  brought  up 
amidst  the  greatest  luxury  he  lived  a  severely  simple 
life,  and  tried  to  persuade  his  wealthier  subjects  to 
follow  his  example.  He  also  tried  to  secure  a  fresh 
distribution  of  land  amongst  his  people,  so  that  general 
prosperity  might  be  restored.  He  failed  in  his  efforts, 
and  paid  for  his  boldness  with  his  life.  Pestalozzi 
eloquently  praises  Agis  for  his  wisdom  and  courage. 

At  Neuhof  he  begins  his  great  educational  work  by 


I50  PESTALOZZI. 

trying  to  reclaim  the  outcast  and  poor ;  at  Stanz  he 
seeks  to  save  the  orphans ;  at  Burgdorf  he  longs  to 
return  to  his  Poor  School  work ;  at  Yverdon  he  insists 
on  returning  to  his  first  and  constant  love ;  and,  finally, 
w^hen  he  returns  to  Neuhof  to  die,  he  again  begins  his 
cherished  labour  of  love  for  the  poor  and  neglected. 
He  sought  to  strengthen  and  refine  the  v^eakest  and 
roughest  link  in  the  social  chain.  He  says :  "  If  we 
wish  to  aid  the  poor  man,  the  very  lowest  among  the 
people,  we  can  do  so  only  in  one  way,  namely,  by 
changing  the  schools  of  the  people  into  places  of  true 
education,  in  which  the  moral,  mental  and  physical 
powers,  which  God  has  put  into  our  nature,  may  be 
drawn  out,  so  that  a  man  may  be  enabled  to  live  such 
a  life  as  he  should  live :  happy  in  himself,  and  a  bless- 
ing to  others.  Only  in  this  way  can  a  man,  whom  in 
the  whole  world  nobody  does  really  help  because  nobody 
can  truly  help,  learn  to  help  himself."  This  is  a  fine 
conception,  and  expression,  of  the  truest  and  best  way 
of  helping  others.  It  is  universal  in  its  truth,  and 
Pestalozzi  was  always  striving  to  make  it  universal  in 
its  application, 

Pestalozzi  argues,  in  Leonard  and  Gertrude^  that  if 
men  are  impoverished  in  mind  and  body  they  become 
degraded  in  both,  and  develop  such  vices  as  dishonesty, 
low  cunning,  craftiness,  suspicion,  wild  violence,  re- 
vengefulness  and  cruelty.  They  lose  all,  what  are 
commonly  called,  the  natural  affections  and  develop 
many  of  the  worst  animal  instincts :  cruelty  to  their 
own  offspring,  treachery  to  one  another,  and  bestial 
living.  Thus  society  not  only  loses  all  the  advantages 
which  might  be  obtained  by  providing  means  for  culti- 
vating the  powers  for  good  which  are  in  every  man,  but 


EDUCATION   AND   SOCIAL   DEVELOPMENT.         151 

suffers  the  positive  dangers  and  disasters  of  having  to 
control  viciously  disposed  human  beings. 

It  is,  therefore,  a  duty  of  society  to  provide  education 
for  all,  both  because  all  God's  gifts  to  man  are  good, 
and  lay  upon  us  the  obligation  of  using  them  well  and 
rightly ;  and  because  the  self-interests  of  society  are 
concerned  in  getting  the  best,  and  not  the  worst,  from 
each  and  every  member  of  the  social  body.  The  first 
aim  of  governments  should,  therefore,  be  to  get  the 
most  and  the  best  from  the  working  classes.  They 
should,  at  least,  take  as  intelligent  a  view  of  the  situa- 
tion as  the  slave-owner,  viz.,  that  the  better  the  workers 
are  cared  for  the  better  it  will  be  for  the  money-bags. 
Even  such  a  mercenary  motive  would  lead  to  a  very 
different  treatment  of  the  peasants. 

The  value  of  a  man  to  the  community  in  which  he 
lives  depends  almost  wholly  upon  the  full  and  right 
development  of  his  faculties,  and  the  proper  employ- 
ment of  his  trained  powers.  To  this  end  the  social 
institutions,  morals  and  methods  of  education  need  to 
be  of  the  best.  If  men  lack  social  culture  they  tend  to 
remain  in  the  state  of  primitive  man  ;  and  true  justice 
and  security  are  impossible  in  the  society  in  which  they 
live.  Education  should  prepare  individuals  for  what 
they  will  be  in  the  community.  They  should  be  so 
trained  that  they  use  their  abilities  to  the  greatest 
possible  advantage,  whether  it  be  as  ploughmen  or 
rat-catchers. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  says  Pestalozzi,  we  find  that  the 
children  of  the  poor  are  the  best  educated  in  relation 
to  the  work  they  will  have  to  do  in  the  community. 
Mothers  and  fathers  instinctively  see  what  is  necessary 
and  best  for  their  children — in  the  state  of  life  in  which 


152  PESTALOZZI. 

they  live  and  are  likely  to  live — and  they  find,  in  do- 
mestic affairs,  the  v^ays  and  means  for  educating  them. 
If  they  did  not  do  this  they  would,  in  time,  certainly 
lose  their  positions  in  the  industrial  world.  Hence  it 
has  become  a  tradition  to  pass  on  from  generation  to 
generation  a  domestic  education. 

The  children  of  the  working  classes  are,  in  the  above 
sense,  far  better  educated  than  those  of  the  well-to-do  ; 
and  this  because  they  have  not  been  to  school.  The 
methods  of  the  schools  are  so  wrong  and  unsuitable 
that  they  do  far  more  harm  than  good.  They  are  too 
abstract,  too  general,  too  superficial,  and  too  little  con- 
nected with,  and  similar  to,  family  life.  The  reason  that 
the  old-fashioned  education  was  so  successful  is  that  it 
was  based  upon,  and  given  through,  the  actual  affairs  of 
life,  and  chiefly  those  of  the  home.  So  far,  therefore, 
as  we  use  schools  for  educating  children  they  must  in 
all  important  points  resemble  and  reflect  the  home  and 
home  life.  It  is  true  that  the  school  can  supply  the 
conditions  of  the  common  life  of  a  community,  which 
the  home  cannot ;  but  until  the  school  has  discharged 
the  functions  of  the  home,  it  is  not  able  to  do  other,  or 
higher,  work.  In  mental,  moral  and  physical  education, 
the  school  must  employ  the  matter  and  the  manner  of 
the  good  mother  and  the  good  home. 

Now,  the  first  aim  of  the  well-conducted  home  is  to 
provide  for  the  physical  needs  and  comforts  of  each 
member  of  the  family ;  so  the  first  aim  of  primary  edu- 
cation should  be  based  upon  the  primary  needs  of  human 
beings.  It  should,  therefore,  be  industrial  and  practical 
in  its  methods,  in  the  first  instance.  To  live,  man  must 
eat ;  to  eat,  he  must  work  for  food  ;  and  to  work  well,  he 
must  be  well  trained  for  work.     There  is  a  wise  old  saw 


EDUCATION   AND   SOCIAL   DEVELOPMENT.         1 53 

amongst  the  common  people  which  says,  "  First  learn 
your  trade,  and  then  talk  about  it ".  This  contains 
much  wisdom,  for  in  learning  to  work  many  instructive 
experiences  are  gone  through  :  the  habit  of  fixed  atten- 
tion is  developed :  the  power  of  judgment  is  exercised 
and  sharpened  :  and  the  feelings  and  sentiments  are 
developed.  Thus  the  mind  is  best  prepared — by  actually 
finding  out  certain  general  rules  of  actions  and  conduct, 
and  by  the  observation  and  consideration  of  single  facts 
— to  proceed  to  deal  with  general  principles,  and  the  in- 
vestigation of  details  through  instruction  at  school. 

It  will,  says  Pestalozzi,  be  said  that  domestic  edu- 
cation is  impossible  because  mothers  are  not  qualified 
to  give  it.  This  difficulty  was  always  present  to  his 
mind ;  he  frequently  refers  to  it ;  and  he  believed  that 
he  had  solved  it.  Speaking  of  his  work  at  Stanz,  he 
says:  ''  My  aim  was  to  carry  the  simplification  of  the 
means  of  teaching  so  far  that  all  the  common  people 
might  easily  be  brought  to  teach  their  children,  and 
gradually  to  render  the  schools  almost  superfluous  for 
the  first  elements  of  instruction.  As  the  mother  is  the 
first  to  nourish  her  child  physically,  so,  also,  by  the 
appointment  of  God,  she  must  be  the  first  to  give  it 
spiritual  nourishment ;  I  consider  that  very  great  evils 
have  been  brought  about  by  sending  children  too  early 
to  school,  and  by  all  the  artificial  means  of  educating 
them  away  from  home.  The  time  will  come,  so  soon 
as  we  shall  have  simplified  instruction,  when  every 
mother  will  be  able  to  teach,  without  the  help  of  others, 
and,  thereby,  at  the  same  time  continue  her  own  educa- 
tion "  {How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

Education  must  be  practical  in  the  sense  that  it  must 
prepare  the  individual  to  find  happiness  in  his  life's 


154  PESTALOZZI. 

work,  whatever  it  may  be ;  and,  in  all  circumstances, 
to  be  a  useful  member  of  society.  Every  man  should 
be  educated  for  his  station  in  life,  whether  he  be  legis- 
lator, lawyer,  clergyman,  or  a  member  of  any  other  pro- 
fession. In  like  manner  the  poor  should  be  educated 
for  poverty.  Children  in  orphanages,  and  other  be- 
nevolent institutions,  should  be  thus  educated.  If  they 
are  they  will  be  able  to  earn  enough  to  pay  for  their 
schooling,  and  something  over;  and  the  state  will  be 
relieved  from  their  after  care — because  of  failure  arising 
from  their  ignorance  and  incapacity.  Pestalozzi  sums 
up  his  position  thus :  "  I  simply  put  to  myself  the 
question :  What  would  you  do  if  you  wished  to  give  a 
single  child  all  the  theoretical  knowledge  and  practical 
skill  which  he  requires  in  order  to  be  able  to  attend 
properly  to  the  great  concerns  of  life,  and  so  attain  to 
inward  contentment  ?  .  .  .  What  are  the  means  of  de- 
veloping in  the  child  those  practical  abilities,  which  the 
ultimate  purpose  of  his  existence,  as  well  as  the  change- 
able positions  and  relations  of  life,  will  or  may  require 
of  him,  and  cultivating  them  to  such  a  degree  of  per- 
fection that  the  fulfilment  of  his  duties  will  be  to 
him,  not  only  possible  or  easy,  but  in  reality  a  second 
nature?" 

Children  thus  educated  will  be  very  unlikely  to  desire 
to  engage  in  work  other  than  that  for  which  they  have 
been  prepared  ;  unless,  in  individual  cases,  there  is  very 
special  ability  and  favourable  opportunities.  At  the 
same  time  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  earliest 
education  given  will,  in  all  cases,  be  quite  general  and 
preparatory,  not  special  or  professional.  The  latter 
needs  a  well-prepared  mind  and  nature,  or  it  cannot 
possibly  be  fully  successful.     Education  does  not  aim 


EDUCATION   AND   MORALS.  1 55 

at  making  good  artisans,  tradesmen,  etc.,  but  good  men 
who  will  certainly  become  good  tradesmen,  artisans,  etc. 
To  omit  this  practical  training,  or  to  give  theoretical 
instruction  before  it,  is  to  put  the  cart  before  the  horse : 
to  make  preachers  and  prattlers  instead  of  doers  and 
thinkers :  and  mere  guessers  instead  of  investigators. 
Domestic  work  and  duties  :  the  importance  of  careful 
attention  and  correct  method  in  doing  them  :  the  need 
of  prompt,  cheerful  and  willing  obedience  :  the  constant 
thinking  of,  and  working  for,  others,  all  tend  to  develop 
both  the  heart  and  the  mind,  and  to  make  good  men 
and  good  citizens.  The  mother  and  the  home,  there- 
fore, and  not  the  book  and  the  school,  are  the  right  and 
proper  beginnings  of  education. 

n.    Education   as    a  Means   of    Moral    and    Relig^ious 
Development. 

The  chief  end  of  education  is  morality,  for  the  human 
element  in  our  nature  can  only  be  truly  developed 
through  the  development  of  the  godlike  element  which 
is  present  in  man.  Man  is  destined  for  eternity.  The 
true  mother  says :  '*  '  My  children  are  born  for  eternity, 
and  confided  expressly  to  me  that  I  may  educate  them 
for  being  children  of  God '.  .  .  .  She  hails  in  her  offspring 
not  merely  the  citizen  of  the  world :  '  Thou  art  born,' 
she  cries,  '  for  immortality,  and  an  immortality  of 
happiness  :  such  is  the  promise  of  thy  heaven-derived  fac- 
ulties ;  such  shall  be  the  consummation  of  thy  Heavenly 
Father's  love ' "  (On  Infants'  Education).  Hence  the 
good  home  gives  the  best  moral  training,  whether  for 
private  or  for  public  life.  This  is  chiefly  because  it  is  in 
the  relation  of  the  child  to  the  mother  that  all  true 
morality  begins ;  and  because  we  must  be  moral  before 


1 56  PESTALOZZI. 

we  can  be  religious,  i.e.,  until  we  have  right  feelings  and 
conduct  towards  our  brother,  whom  we  have  seen,  we 
cannot  have  right  feelings  and  conduct  towards  God, 
whom  we  have  not  seen.  Pestalozzi  sets  out  his  views 
on  these  points  in  a  very  clear  and  charming  way. 

"  I  find  that  the  feelings  of  love,  confidence  and 
gratitude,  and  the  habit  of  obedience,  require  to  be 
developed  in  man,  before  they  can  be  directed  to  the 
Divine  Being  as  their  object.  I  must  love  men,  con- 
fide in  men,  be  grateful  to  men,  and  obey  men,  before  I 
can  cherish  the  same  feelings,  and  practice  the  same 
virtues  towards  God,  '  for  he  that  loveth  not  his  brother, 
whom  he  hath  seen,  how  can  he  love  God,  whom  he 
hath  not  seen  '. 

"The  question  then  is:  What  are  the  means  of 
awakening  in  the  child,  love,  confidence,  gratitude  and 
obedience,  with  regard  to  man  ?  I  answer  :  All  those 
virtues  originate  in  the  relationship  established  between 
the  infant  and  its  mother.  The  mother  is  impelled,  as 
it  were,  by  instinct  to  nurse  and  foster  her  child,  to 
afford  him  shelter  and  happiness.  She  satisfies  all  his 
wants,  she  removes  from  him  all  that  is  unpleasant  to 
him,  she  assists  his  helplessness,  the  child  is  provided 
for  and  made  happy :  the  seed  of  love  begins  to  be 
unfolded. 

"  A  new  object  strikes  his  senses ;  he  is  astonished, 
afraid,  he  cries  ;  the  mother  presses  him  more  fondly  to 
her  bosom,  she  plays  with  him,  amuses  him  ;  he  ceases 
from  crying,  but  the  tears  remain  in  his  eyes.  The  object 
re-appears,  the  mother  throws  round  him  again  her  pro- 
tecting arms,  and  comforts  him  with  a  smile;  he  cries 
no  longer,  his  bright  unclouded  little  eye  answers  the 
mother's  smile :  the  seed  of  confidence  has  taken  root, 


EDUCATION   AND   MORALS.  1 57 

"  The  mother  runs  to  the  cradle  whenever  he  has 
any  want ;  she  is  there  in  the  hour  of  hunger,  at  her 
breast  his  cravings  are  satisfied  ;  when  he  hears  her 
step  approaching  his  cryings  cease ;  when  he  sees  her, 
he  stretches  out  his  little  arms  ;  while  hanging  at  her 
bosom  his  eyes  beam  with  satisfaction ;  mother  and 
satisfaction  are  to  him  but  one  idea — it  is  that  of  grati- 
tude. 

*'  The  germs  of  love,  confidence  and  gratitude  grow 
rapidly.  His  ear  listens  to  his  mother's  footsteps  ;  his 
eye  follows  her  shadow  with  a  smile  ;  he  loves  those 
who  resemble  her :  a  being  who  resembles  his  mother 
is,  in  his  idea,  a  kind  being.  He  beholds  the  human 
form,  the  form  of  his  mother,  with  delight :  whoever  is 
dear  to  his  mother  is  dear  to  him  ;  he  embraces  those 
whom  she  embraces,  and  kisses  those  whom  she  kisses : 
the  love  of  mankind,  brotherly  love,  springs  up  in  his 
heart-  .  .  . 

''  Nature  opposes  the  storming  child  by  unbending 
necessity.  The  child  knocks  against  wood  and  stone  ; 
nature  remains  unbending,  and  the  child  ceases  to 
knock  against  wood  and  stone.  The  mother  also  be- 
gins to  oppose  in  the  same  manner  the  turbulence  of 
his  desires.  He  raves  and  kicks :  she  remains  inexor- 
able— he  ceases  to  cry,  and  accustoms  himself  to  subject 
his  will  to  hers :  the  seeds  of  patience  and  obedience 
are  unfolding  themselves  in  his  heart. 

''By  the  united  action  of  love,  gratitude,  confidence 
and  obedience,  the  conscience  is  awakened :  the  first 
shade  of  a  feeling  that  it  is  wrong  to  rave  against  a 
loving  mother  ;  that  the  mother  is  not  in  the  world  for 
his  sake  only.  This  leads  to  the  feeling  that  other 
beings  and  things,  nay,  he  himself,  are  not  made  for 


158  PESTALOZZI. 

his  sake  only :  and  here  are  the  first  germs  of  duty,  of 
right.  .  .  . 

"  The  infant  trusts  and  obeys,  but  he  is  unconscious 
of  the  grounds  of  his  confidence  and  of  his  obedience, 
and  as  he  becomes  gradually  conscious  of  them,  this 
power  over  him  diminishes  in  the  same  proportion.  He 
begins  to  feel  himself,  he  leaves  the  hand  of  his  mother, 
and  a  voice  whispers  in  his  bosom,  '  I  have  no  more 
need  of  my  mother '.  The  mother  reads  in  his  eyes  the 
rising  thought,  she  presses  her  darling  more  affection- 
ately than  ever  to  her  bosom,  and  she  says,  with  a  voice 
such  as  he  never  heard  before,  '  Oh,  my  child,  there  is 
a  God  of  whom  thou  wilt  have  need,  though  thou 
shouldst  have  no  more  need  of  me :  a  God  who  will 
protect  thee  when  I  am  no  longer  able  to  do  it :  a  God 
who  will  prepare  for  thee  joy  and  happiness,  when  I 
have  no  more  to  give '. 

''Then  rises  in  the  child's  bosom  an  unspeakable 
something,  a  holy  feeling,  an  impulse  of  faith,  that  raises 
him  above  himself.  He  rejoices  to  hear  the  name  of 
God  from  the  lips  of  his  mother,  the  feelings  of  love, 
gratitude  and  confidence,  which  the  sympathies  of  her 
bosom  kindled  in  him,  are  enlarged ;  they  now  embrace 
his  Heavenly  Father,  as  they  first  did  his  earthly  parents. 
The  sphere  of  obedience  is  extended  ;  the  .child  now 
fears  the  eye  of  God,  as  it  did  before  that  of  its  mother ; 
and  as  for  the  mother's  sake  heretofore,  so  now  he  does 
right  for  the  sake  of  God.  .  .   . 

"  The  further  development  of  those  feelings  requires 
the  highest  art  of  education.  Those  feelings  are  of 
divine  origin,  and  on  their  preservation,  therefore, 
depends  the  measure  of  moral  power  of  which  the  child 
shall  afterwards  be  possessed.      Every  means  should 


EDUCATION   AND   MORALS.  1 59 

be  used  to  supply  new  fuel  to  those  feelings,  when  the 
physical  incentives  cease,  which  called  them  forth  in 
infancy;  and  the  charms  of  the  world  should  be  pre- 
sented to  the  child  in  constant  subserviency  to  those 
feelings. 

''  Here  you  must  not  trust  to  nature  ;  you  must  do 
all  that  is  in  your  power  to  supply  the  place  of  her 
henceforth  blind  guidance,  by  the  wisdom  of  experience. 
For  the  world  which  the  child  now  enters,  is  not  such 
as  it  went  forth  from  the  hands  of  the  Creator ;  it  is  a 
world  full  of  deadly  poison,  both  as  regards  his  sen- 
sual enjoyments  and  the  feelings  of  his  moral  nature  ; 
a  world  full  of  warfare,  selfishness,  inconsistency,  vio- 
lence, conceit,  falsehood  and  deception  "  {How  Gertrude 
Teaches). 

In  the  world  of  morals,  as  in  all  else  that  concerns 
the  development  of  the  human  being,  it  is  life  itself 
which  must  give  the  beginnings  and  the  basis  of  educa- 
tion. The  proper  work  of  moral  education  is  to  secure 
the  pure  development  of  the  will,  in  its  highest  and 
fullest  form,  through  the  continued  and  ever-loftier  exer- 
cise of  its  power  in  love,  gratitude  and  faith — the  moral 
elements  already  brought  into  life  and  activity  in  the 
relations  of  the  mother  and  the  child.  We  must  get 
the  child  to  strive  after  moral  perfection  by  teaching  it 
to  exercise  its  will  through  moral  thoughts,  feelings  and 
deeds. 

"Man  readily  accepts  what  is  good,  and  the  child 
willingly  listens  to  it ;  but  it  is  not  for  your  sake  that 
he  desires  it,  master  and  educator,  but  for  his  own. 
The  good  to  which  you  wish  to  direct  him  must  not  de- 
pend upon  your  varying  moods  or  temper ;  it  must  be 
a  good  which   is  good  in  itself   and  in  the   nature  of 


l60  PESTALOZZI. 

things,  and  which  the  child  can  recognise,  for  itself,  as 
good.  He  must  feel  that  there  is  a  necessity  for  your 
will  in  things  which  have  to  do  with  his  well-being  be- 
fore he  can  be  expected  to  obey  you. 

"Whatever  he  does  gladly;  whatever  brings  him 
credit ;  whatever  helps  him  to  realise  his  greatest  hopes  ; 
whatever  rouses  his  powers  and  enables  him  to  say  with 
truth  /  can :  these  things  he  wills.  But  will,  in  this 
sense,  cannot  be  aroused  by  mere  words  ;  it  can  only  be 
brought  into  activity  by  the  powers  and  feelings  which 
come  from  general  culture  [humane  education].  Words 
alone  cannot  give  a  real  knowledge  of  things :  they 
only  give  expression  to,  a  picture  of,  what  we  already 
have  in  our  minds. 

''Try,  first,  to  broaden  your  children's  sympathies, 
and,  through  satisfying  their  daily  needs,  to  bring  love 
and  kindness  into  such  unceasing  association  with 
their  impressions  and  activity,  that  these  sentiments 
may  be  engrafted  in  their  hearts  ;  then  try  to  give  them 
such  judgment  and  tact  as  will  enable  them  to  make  a 
wise,  sure  and  abundant  use  of  these  virtues  in  the 
circle  in  which  they  live.  Finally,  do  not  hesitate  to 
touch  on  the  difficult  questions  of  good  and  evil,  and 
the  words  connected  with  them.  You  must  do  this 
more  particularly  in  connection  with  the  ordinary 
events  of  everyday  life,  upon  which  all  your  teaching  in 
these  matters  must  be  founded,  so  that  the  children 
may  be  reminded  of  their  own  actual  feelings,  and 
supplied,  as  it  were,  with  solid  facts  upon  which  to  base 
their  conception  of  the  beauty  and  justice  of  the  moral 
life.  .  .  . 

"  Elementary  moral  education,  considered  as  a  whole, 
has  three  distinct  elements :  first,  the  children's  moral 


EDUCATION   AND   MORALS.  l6l 

sense  must  be  aroused  through  their  feeHngs  being 
made  active  and  pure ;  then  they  must  be  exercised  in 
self-control,  and  thus  enabled  to  devote  themselves 
steadily  to  that  which  is  right  and  good ;  finally,  they 
must  be  brought  to  form  for  themselves,  by  reflection 
and  comparison,  a  just  idea  of  the  moral  rights  and 
duties  which  belong  to  them  by  reason  of  their  position 
and  surroundings  "  (How  Gertrude  Teaches), 

Moral  training  is  possible  under  all  circumstances,  and 
through  all  kinds  of  work.  Work  is,  in  itself,  neither 
moral  nor  immoral,  but  the  manner  in  which  it  is  done 
is  either  one  or  the  other.  Therefore  children  can  be 
as  easily  educated  in  morals  whilst  living  in  an  in- 
dustrial institution  as  in  any  other  circumstances.  In- 
deed all  forms  of  physical  exercises  have  a  direct 
connection  with  moral  education.  "  If  the  physical 
advantage  of  gymnastics  is  great  and  uncontrovertible, 
I  would  contend  that  the  moral  advantage  resulting 
from  them  is  as  valuable.  .  .  .  Gymnastics,  well  con- 
ducted, essentially  contribute  to  render  children  not 
only  cheerful  and  healthy,  which,  for  moral  education, 
are  two  all-important  points,  but  also  to  promote  among 
them  a  certain  spirit  of  union,  and  a  brotherly  feeling, 
which  are  most  gratifying  to  the  observer.  Habits  of 
industry,  openness  and  frankness  of  character,  personal 
courage,  and  a  manly  bearing  in  suffering  pain,  are  also 
among  the  natural  and  constant  consequences  of  an 
early  and  a  continued  practice  of  exercises  on  the  gym- 
nastic system  "  {On  Infants'  Education). 

Like  Aristotle,  Pestalozzi  has  a  firm  belief  in  the 
moral  influence  of  music.  He  calls  it  "  one  of  the  most 
effective  aids  of  moral  education.  ...  It  is  the  marked 
and  most  beneficial  influence  of  music  on  the  feelings, 

II 


1 62  PESTALOZZI. 

which  I  have  always  thought  and  always  observed  to 
be  most  efficient  in  preparing  or  attuning,  as  it  were,  the 
mind  for  the  best  impressions.  The  exquisite  harmony 
of  a  superior  performance,  the  studied  elegance  of  the 
execution,  may  indeed  give  satisfaction  to  a  connois- 
seur ;  but  it  is  the  simple  and  untaught  grace  of  melody 
which  speaks  to  the  heart  of  every  human  being.  Our 
own  national  melodies,  which  have  since  time  im- 
memorial been  resounding  in  our  native  villages,  are 
fraught  with  reminiscences  of  the  brightest  pages  of  our 
history,  and  of  the  most  endearing  scenes  of  domestic 
life.  But  the  effect  of  music  in  education  is  not  only  to 
keep  alive  a  national  feeling :  it  goes  much  deeper ;  if 
cultivated  in  the  right  spirit,  it  strikes  at  the  root  of 
every  bad  or  narrow  feeling,  of  every  ungenerous  or 
mean  propensity,  of  every  emotion  unworthy  of  human- 

ity 

"  I  need  not  remind  you  of  the  importance  of  music 
in  engendering  and  assisting  the  highest  feelings  of 
which  man  is  capable.  It  is  almost  universally  acknow- 
ledged that  Luther  has  seen  the  truth,  when  he  pointed 
out  that  music,  devoid  of  studied  pomp  and  vain  orna- 
ment, in  its  solemn  and  impressive  simplicity,  is  one 
of  the  most  efficient  means  of  elevating  and  purifying 
genuine  feelings  of  devotion  "  (On  Infants'  Education). 

III.  Education  as  a  Means  of  Physical  Development. 

Pestalozzi  not  only  advocated  and  carried  out  system- 
atic physical  education,  but  he  had,  as  in  other  matters, 
a  very  deep  insight  into  the  nature  of  the  elements  and 
the  ends  of  it.  He  says :  "If,  according  to  correct 
principles  of  education,  all  the  powers  of  man  are  to  be 
developed,  and  all  his  slumbering  energies  called  into 


EDUCATION   AND   PHYSICAL  DEVELOPMENT.      1 63 

play,  the  early  attention  of  mothers  must  be  directed 
to  a  subject  which  is  generally  considered  to  require 
neither  much  thought  nor  experience,  and,  therefore,  is 
generally  neglected.  I  mean  the  physical  education  of 
children.  Who  has  not  a  few  general  sentences  at  hand, 
which  he  will  be  ready  to  quote,  but  perhaps  not  to 
practise,  on  the  management  of  children  ?  .  .  . 

"The  revival  of  gymnastics  is,  in  my  opinion,  the 
most  important  step  that  has  been  taken  in  this  direc- 
tion. The  great  merit  of  the  gymnastic  art  is  not  the 
facility  with  which  certain  exercises  are  performed,  or 
the  ability  which  they  may  give  for  certain  exertions 
that  require  much  energy  and  dexterity;  though  an 
attainment  of  that  sort  is  by  no  means  to  be  despised. 
But  the  greatest  advantage  resulting  from  a  practice  of 
such  exercises,  is  the  natural  progression  which  has  to 
be  observed  in  the  arrangement  of  them :  beginning 
with  those  which,  while  they  are  easy  in  themselves, 
lead,  as  preparatory  exercises,  to  others  which  are  more 
complicated  and  more  difficult.  There  is  not,  perhaps, 
any  art  in  which  it  may  be  so  clearly  shown,  that  powers 
which  appeared  to  be  wanting,  are  to  be  developed  by 
no  other  means  than  practice  alone.  .  .  .  When  ability 
is  wanting  altogether  I  know  that  it  cannot  be  imparted 
by  any  system  of  education.  But  I  have  been  taught 
by  experience  to  believe  that  cases  in  which  talents  of 
any  kind  are  absolutely  wanting  are  very  few.  In  most 
cases  I  have  had  the  satisfaction  to  find  that  a  faculty 
which  had  been  given  up  as  hopeless,  instead  of  being 
helped  to  develop  had  been  hindered  and  obstructed  in 
its  activity  by  a  variety  of  exercises  which  tended  to 
confuse  the  learner  or  deter  him  from  further  exertion. 

*'  And  here  I  would  attend  to  a  prejudice  which  is 
II  * 


1 64  PESTALOZZI. 

very  common  concerning  gymnastics :  it  is  frequently 
said  that  they  may  be  very  good  for  those  who  are 
strong  enough ;  but  that  those  who  are  of  a  weak  con- 
stitution would  be  altogether  unequal  to,  and  even 
endangered  by,  the  practice  of  gymnastics.  Now  I  will 
venture  to  say  that  this  rests  merely  upon  a  misunder- 
standing of  the  first  principles  of  gymnastics  :  that  exer- 
cises must  not  only  vary  according  to  the  strength  of 
individuals,  but  that  they  should  be,  and  indeed  have 
been,  devised  for  those  also  who  were  actually  suffering. 
I  have  consulted  the  authority  of  the  first  physicians, 
who  declared  that,  in  cases  which  had  come  under  their 
personal  observation,individuals  affected  with  pulmonary 
complaints — if  these  had  not  already  gone  too  far — had 
been  materially  relieved  and  benefited  by  a  constant 
practice  of  the  few  and  simple  exercises  which  the 
system,  in  such  cases,  proposes.  .  .  .  Exercises  may  be 
devised  for  every  age,  and  for  every  degree  of  bodily 
strength,  however  reduced.  .  .  . 

"  Physical  exercises  ought  by  no  means  to  be  confined 
to  those  exercises  which  now  receive  the  name  of  gym- 
nastics. By  means  of  them  strength  and  dexterity  will 
be  acquired  in  the  use  of  the  limbs  in  general ;  but 
particular  exercises  ought  to  be  devised  for  the  practice 
of  all  the  senses.  This  idea  may  at  first  seem  a  super- 
fluous refinement,  or  an  unnecessary  encumbrance  of 
free  development.  We  have  acquired  the  full  uses  of 
our  senses,  it  is  true,  without  any  special  instruction  of 
that  sort :  but  the  question  is  not  whether  these  exer- 
cises are  indispensable,  but  whether,  under  many  cir- 
cumstances, they  will  not  prove  very  useful. 

"  How  many  are  there  of  us  whose  eyes  would,  without 
any  assistance,  judge  correctly  of  a  dista^nce,  or  of  the 


EDUCATION    AND   PHYSICAL   DEVELOPMENT.       165 

proportion  of  the  size  of  different  objects  ?  How  many 
are  there  who  distinguish  and  recognise  the  nice  shades 
of  colours,  without  actually  comparing  the  one  with 
the  other ;  or  whose  ears  will  be  alive  to  the  slightest 
variation  of  sound  ?  Those  who  are  able  to  do  such 
things  with  some  degree  of  perfection,  will  be  found  to 
derive  their  facility  either  from  a  certain  innate  talent, 
or  from  constant  and  laborious  practice.  Now  it  is 
evident  that  there  is  a  certain  superiority  in  these  attain- 
ments, which  natural  talent  gives  without  any  special 
exertion,  and  which  instruction  could  never  impart, 
though  attended  by  the  most  diligent  application.  But 
if  practice  cannot  do  everything,  at  least  it  can  do  much  ; 
and  the  earlier  it  is  begun,  the  easier  and  the  more  per- 
fect must  be  the  success"  (On  Infants\ Education). 

True  physical  education  is  much  more  than  a  develop- 
ing of  muscle :  it  is  a  developing  of  mind.  Not  only 
does  our  very  existence  depend  upon  the  proper  exercise 
of  our  body,  but  the  nurture  of  the  intellectual  powers, 
in  the  first  instance,  depends  upon  the  activity  and 
development  of  the  physical  powers.  The  inner  unity 
of  our  nature  depends  upon,  and  demands,  the  har- 
monious and  balanced  development  of  body  and  mind. 
The  mind  would  have  little  or  nothing  which  would 
arouse  its  activities  if  it  were  not  for  the  exercise  of  the 
senses  and  the  general  physical  powers. 

The  direct  aim  so  far  as  the  physical  powers  them- 
selves are  concerned  should  be :  (i)  the  development  of 
strength,  which  can  be  secured  through  exercises  which 
demand  easy  control  of  the  limbs,  and  the  overcoming  of 
physical  obstacles ;  and  (2)  the  development  of  grace, 
which  may  be  obtained  through  exercises  which  require 
regular  and  rhythmic  movements. 


l66  PESTALOZZI. 

The  view  of  physical  education  which  Pestalozzi  held 
is  evidently  a  very  broad  and  comprehensive  one.  He 
sought  to  further  normal  development :  to  correct  wrong 
and  defective  development :  to  train  the  special  senses 
as  well  as  the  muscular  system :  to  use  gymnastics  as 
a  curative  agent  in  cases  of  disease  :  to  produce  muscular 
power  and  skill :  to  afford  pleasure  and  the  development 
which  comes  from  play :  and  to  aid  intellectual  and 
moral  development.  With  some  of  these  points  we 
shall  deal  further  in  a  later  chapter. 


CHAPTER  X. 

PESTALOZZI  THE  THINKER  (continued). 

We  now  come  to  the  most  important  and  the  most 
difficult  part  of  our  study:  Pestalozzi's  ideas  on  the 
intellectual  basis  of  all  education,  and  the  education  of 
the  intellect.  This  is  most  important  because  it  is  the 
most  fundamental  part  of  his  thought  and  work ;  and 
it  is  the  most  difficult  because  of  the  characteristics  of 
his  own  mind  and  methods.  However,  we  do  but  at- 
tempt to  do  something  hke  what  Niederer  tried  to  do 
for  him,  during  his  lifetime ;  and  what  Pestalozzi  him- 
self exhorted  his  disciples  to  do :  systematise  (as  best 
we  can)  the  great  thoughts  which  he  gave  out  so  pro- 
fusely and  so  promiscuously. 

With  his  usual  frankness  and  modesty,  Pestalozzi 
disclaims  any  pretension  to  have  set  forth  a  complete 
theory  and  art  of  education.  He  writes:  "When  I 
assert  positively  that  a  man's  powers  are  all  part  of  an 
organic  whole,  I  do  not  in  the  least  wish  to  suggest 
that  I  have  thoroughly  apprehended  either  this  or- 
ganism or  its  laws ;  and  when  I  state  that  a  rational 
method  must  be  followed  in  teaching,  I  do  not  for  a 
moment  pretend  that  I  have  always  followed  such  a 
method,  or  that  I  have  worked  out  all  the  details  of 
one".  In  one  passage  he  likens  himself  to  "the 
Egyptian  who  first  fastened  the  shovel  to  the  horns  of 
an  ox,  and  so  taught  it  to  do  the  work  of  the  man  who 

167 


l68  PESTALOZZI. 

digs;  [and  thus]  led  the  way  to  the  discovery  of  the 
plough,  though  he  did  not  bring  it  to  perfection " 
(How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

Since  the  end  and  aim  desired  must  determine  the 
ways  and  means  adopted,  we  propose  to  give  extracts 
in  which  Pestalozzi  has  summarised,  more  or  less,  his 
views  on  these  two  aspects  of  education.  These  are 
meant  to  serve  as  a  summary  of  the  preceding  chapter 
and  a  preparation  for  part  v.  of  this  chapter. 

IV.  What  Education  is. 

From  the  social  aspect  he  says:  "the  education  of 
men  is  simply  the  filing  of  each  ring  in  the  great  chain 
which  joins  humanity  together  and  makes  it  a  whole. 
The  mistakes  of  education  are  due  to  working  at  each 
ring  of  the  chain  separately,  as  though  it  were  a  separate 
unit,  and  not  an  integral  part  of  the  whole  :  as  though 
the  strength  and  utility  of  each  ring  were  due  to  the 
fact  of  its  being  gilded,  silvered,  or  even  set  with  precious 
stones,  and  not  due  to  the  fact  that  it  had  been  made 
supple  and  strong  enough  alwa57S  to  take  part  in  all  the 
movements  of  the  chain  in  all  its  windings  "  {Leonard 
and  Gertrude). 

"The  ultimate  end  of  education  is  not  a  perfection  in 
the  accomplishments  of  the  school,  but  fitness  for  life ; 
not  the  acquirement  of  habits  of  blind  obedience,  and  of 
prescribed  diligence,  but  a  preparation  for  independent 
action.  We  must  bear  in  mind  that  whatever  class  of 
society  a  pupil  may  belong  to,  whatever  calling  he  may 
be  intended  for,  there  are  certain  faculties  in  human 
nature  common  to  all,  which  constitute  the  stock  of  the 
fundamental  energies  of  man.  We  have  no  right  to 
withhold  from  any  one  the  opportunities  for  develop- 


WHAT   EDUCATION    IS.  169 

ing  all  their  faculties.  It  may  be  judicious  to  treat  some 
of  them  with  marked  attention,  and  to  give  up  the  idea 
of  bringing  others  to  high  perfection.  The  diversity 
of  talent  and  inclination,  of  plans  and  pursuits,  is  a 
sufficient  proof  of  the  necessity  for  such  a  distinction. 
But  I  repeat  that  we  have  no  right  to  shut  out  the 
child  from  the  development  of  those  faculties  also, 
which  we  may  not  for  the  present  conceive  to  be  very 
essential  for  his  future  calling  or  station  in  life.  .  .  . 

"  Education,  instead  of  merely  considering  what  is  to 
be  imparted  to  children,  ought  to  consider  first  what 
they  may  be  said  already  to  possess,  if  not  as  a  de- 
veloped, at  least  as  an  involved  faculty  capable  of  de- 
velopment. Or  if,  instead  of  speaking  thus  in  the 
abstract,  we  will  but  recollect,  that  it  is  to  the  great 
Author  of  life  that  man  owes  the  possession,  and  is 
responsible  for  the  use,  of  his  innate  faculties,  education 
should  not  only  decide  what  is  to  be  made  of  a  child, 
but  rather  inquire,  what  is  a  child  quahfied  for ;  what 
is  his  destiny,  as  a  created  and  responsible  being ;  what 
are  his  faculties  as  a  rational  and  moral  being ;  what  are 
the  means  pointed  out  for  their  perfection,  and  the  end 
held  out  as  the  highest  object  of  their  efforts?  They 
embrace  the  rightful  claims  of  all  classes  to  a  general 
diffusion  of  useful  knowledge,  a  careful  development  of 
the  intellect,  and  judicious  attention  to  all  the  faculties 
of  man,  physical,  intellectual  and  moral "  {On  Infants' 
Education). 

The  moral  side  of  education  was  regarded  by  Pesta- 
lozzi  as  directly  social  in  its  bearings.  "  In  relation  to 
society,  man  should  be  qualified  by  education  to  be  a 
useful  member  of  it.  In  order  to  be  truly  useful  it  is 
necessary  that   he   should   be   truly  independent.  .  .  . 


1^0  PESTALOZZI. 

True  independence  must  fall  and  rise  with  the  dignity 
of  his  moral  character.  ...  A  state  of  bondage,  or  of 
self-merited  poverty,  is  not  more  degrading  than  a  state 
of  dependence  on  considerations  which  betray  littleness 
of  mind,  want  of  moral  energy,  or  of  honourable  feeling. 
.  .  .  Education  should  contribute  in  giving  happiness. 
The  feeling  of  happiness  does  not  arise  from  exterior 
circumstances ;  it  is  a  state  of  mind,  a  consciousness  of 
harmony  both  with  the  inward  and  the  outward  world  : 
it  assigns  their  due  limits  to  the  desires,  and  it  proposes 
the  highest  aim  to  the  faculties  of  man  "  {On  Infants' 
Education). 

From  the  personal  or  individual  point  of  view  Pesta- 
lozzi  says  that  "  education  consists  in  returning  to  the 
methods  of  Nature,  and  in  developing  and  improving 
the  dispositions  and  powers  of  man.  .  .  .  [It]  involves 
the  harmonious  balance  of  all  a  man's  powers,  and  this 
involves  the  natural  development  of  each  and  all.  Each 
power  must  be  developed  according  to  the  laws  of  its 
own  nature,  and  these  are  not  the  same  for  the  heart, 
for  the  mind,  and  for  the  body  "  {Swan's  Song). 

''  Each  of  our  moral,  mental  and  bodily  powers  must 
have  its  development  based  upon  its  own  nature,  and 
not  based  upon  artificial  and  outside  influences. 

"Faith  must  be  developed  by  exercises  in  believ- 
ing, and  cannot  be  developed  from  the  knowledge  and 
understanding,  only,  of  what  is  to  be  believed ;  thought 
must  grow  from  thinking,  for  it  cannot  come  simply 
from  the  knowledge  and  understanding  of  what  is  to  be 
thought,  or  the  laws  of  thought ;  love  must  be  developed 
by  loving,  for  it  does  not  arise  merely  from  a  knowledge 
and  understanding  of  what  love  is,  and  of  what  ought 
to  be  loved;  art,  also,  can  only  be  cultivated  through 


WHAT  EDUCATION  IS.  I/I 

doing  artistic  work  and  acquiring  skill,  for  unending 
discussion  of  art  and  skill  will  not  develop  them.  Such 
a  return  to  the  true  method  of  Nature  in  the  method  of 
the  development  of  our  powers  necessitates  the  sub- 
ordination of  education  to  the  knowledge  of  the  various 
laws  which  govern  those  powers"  {Address,  on  Seventy- 
second  Birthday). 

Pestalozzi  thus  speaks  of  his  own  efforts  to  follow  the 
method  of  nature:  "The  more  I  pursued  the  track  of 
nature,  the  more  I  strove  to  connect  my  endeavours 
with  her  working  and  exerted  myself  to  keep  pace  with 
her,  the  more  did  I  perceive  the  immense  progress  of 
her  course ;  and,  to  my  astonishment,  I  found  the  child 
endowed  with  sufficient  power  to  follow  her.  The  only 
weakness  I  met  with  was  [my  own]  inability  to  make 
the  best  use  of  what  was  already  in  existence ;  I  found 
myself  guilty  of  the  weakness  of  presumption,  in  making 
myself  the  moving  power,  instead  of  merely  collecting 
materials  for  an  internal  power  of  action ;  or  rather,  in 
attempting  to  cram  that  into  the  child,  which  is  only  to 
be  drawn  forth  from  him,  as  it  is  primitively  deposited 
in  him,  and  requires  nothing  but  a  stimulus  of  life  to 
give  the  impulse  for  its  development.  I  now  thought 
thrice  before  I  presumed  to  imagine  anything  too  diffi- 
cult for  the  children ;  and  ten  times  before  I  ventured 
'  It  is  beyond  them  '.  I  was  brought  to  the  firm  convic- 
tion that  all  instruction,  to  have  a  truly  enlightening 
and  cultivating  influence,  must  be  drawn  out  of  chil- 
dren and,  as  it  were,  begotten  within  their  minds  "  {How 
Gertrude  Teaches). 

Again  he  says  :  "  The  idea  of  elementary  education, 
to  which  I  have  devoted  my  life,  consists  in  re-estab- 
lishing the    course  of  nature,  and    in  developing  and 


172  PESTALOZZL 

improving  the  tendencies  and  powers  of  humanity " 
{Swans  Song).  It  is  interesting  to  compare  this  state- 
ment with  one  by  so  modern,  and  competent,  an  au- 
thority as  Sir  James  Crichton  Browne  :  "  Education  is 
the  guidance  of  growth  ". 

*'  Elementary  education,  accurately  defined,  is  the 
outcome  of  the  efforts  of  the  human  race  to  give  such 
assistance  to  the  course  of  nature  in  the  development 
and  perfecting  of  our  powers,  as  the  intelligent  love, 
the  trained  thought,  and  the  enlightened  artistic  sense 
of  our  race  are  capable  of  giving.  Left  to  itself  the 
course  of  nature  is  only  quickened  by  the  animal  in- 
stincts. It  is  the  duty  of  the  race,  and  the  aim  of 
elementary  education — as  of  religion  and  wisdom — to 
animate  the  course  of  nature  by  human  and  divine  in- 
fluences. .  .  .  Only  that  which  takes  possession  of  man 
as  a  whole  (heart,  mind  and  hand)  is  educative  in  the 
true  sense  of  the  word,  and  in  accordance  with  nature. 
Anything  which  does  not  so  take  possession  of  him,  is 
not  in  accord  with  nature,  and  is  not,  therefore,  in  the 
true  sense  of  the  word,  humanly  educative.  All  one- 
sided development  of  any  one  of  our  powers  is  not  true 
education  "  (Swan's  Song). 

"  What  natural  instinct  has  done  unconsciously,  but 
with  sure  and  certain  success,  the  educator  must  con- 
tinue, through  his  insight  and  intuitive  knowledge ; 
what  has  resulted  from  the  necessities  of  nature,  must 
be  continued  by  education,  guided  by  reason  :  and  must 
be  equally  thorough  and  complete  in  its  treatment  and  as 
certain  of  success  "  (On  the  Idea  of  Elementary  Education). 

"  Man  can,  at  best,  do  no  more  than  assist  the 
child's  nature  in  the  effort  which  it  makes  for  its  own 
development ;  and  to  do  this,  so  that  the  impressions 


WHAT   EDUCATION    IS.  173 

made  upon  the  child  may  always  be  commensurate,  and 
in  harmony,  with  the  measure  and  character  of  the 
powers  already  unfolded  in  him,  is  the  great  secret  of 
education.  The  perceptions  to  which  a  child  is  led  by 
his  instruction  must,  therefore,  necessarily  be  subjected 
to  a  certain  order  of  succession,  the  beginning  of  which 
must  be  adapted  to  the  very  first  unfolding  of  the  child's 
powers,  and  its  progress  kept  exactly  parallel  with  that 
of  the  child's  own  development.  [We  must]  discover 
those  successions  throughout  the  whole  range  of  human 
knowledge,  but  especially  in  those  essentials  in  which 
the  development  of  the  human  mind  takes  its  beginning  " 
(How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

Pestalozzi  is  very  definite  in  his  view  that  the  idea  of 
education  must  be  such  that  it  clearly  recognises  that 
human  life  is  evolutionary  in  its  processes — what  we 
should  now  call  the  organic  and  genetic  view  of  education. 
He  says  that  elementary  education  deals,  essentially, 
with  human  nature  as  a  unity,  as  a  whole  ;  and  with 
the  whole  system  of  its  powers  and  dispositions.  "  The 
idea  of  elementary  education  is  a  general  idea  which 
must  necessarily  be  divided  into  moral,  mental  and 
physical  education  for  purposes  of  exposition  and  ap- 
plication, but  such  single  divisions  never  occur  in  human 
life :  on  the  contrary,  the  moral,  mental  and  physical 
always  interpenetrate,  for  human  nature  is  a  unity" 
{On  the  Idea  of  Elementary  Education).  He  makes  use 
of  several  analogies  to  show  what  he  means,  e.g.,  "A 
child  is  a  being  endowed  with  all  the  faculties  of  human 
nature,  but  none  of  them  developed :  a  bud  not  yet 
opened.  When  the  bud  uncloses  every  one  of  the  leaves 
unfolds,  not  one  remains  behind.  Such  must  be  the 
process  of  education  "  {On  Infants  Education). 


174  PESTALOZZI. 

Again  in  his  treatise  On  the  Idea  of  Elementary  Educa- 
tion, he  says  that  education  must  imitate  the  processes 
of  nature.  In  every  plant,  at  every  stage  of  growth, 
there  is  a  harmonious  and  interdependent  development 
of  substance  and  form,  so  that  at  any  and  every  period 
of  its  growth,  the  plant  is  (i)  complete  in  its  whole 
being,  i.e.,  neither  too  advanced  nor  too  backward  in  any 
particular  details,  but  a  well-balanced  whole;  and  (2) 
incomplete,  inasmuch  as  it  is  always  growing.  Just  so, 
in  education,  the  child  must  always  appear  to  be' both 
complete  and  incomplete  :  complete  as  to  the  particular 
stage  of  its  development,  incomplete  as  to  its  unending 
development.  The  pupil  must  grow  out  of  himself  into 
his  surroundings  and  position. 

Education  must  provide  whatever  is  necessary  to 
nourish  every  single  human  power :  the  activities  and 
exercises  which  shall  call  forth  and  improve  each  and 
every  faculty:  and  the  proper  gradation  of  such 
exercises  so  as  to  suit  the  increasing  capacity  and 
strength  of  such  powers  and  faculties.  A  child  is  a 
living  self-active  force  which,  from  the  earliest  moment 
of  its  being,  acts  organically  on  its  own  development. 
Nothing  can  efficiently  act  upon  the  child  unless  the 
child  acts  upon  it.  The  laws  and  activities  of  the  child, 
as  an  organism,  are  within  itself.  Whatever  nature,  the 
mother,  and  the  domestic  surroundings  may  give  to  the 
child  in  the  way  of  stimulations  and  impressions — so 
absolutely  necessary  for  its  existence  and  well-being — 
these  only  impel  and  condition  the  child's  activities ; 
they  have  not,  and  cannot  have,  any  power  over  the 
nature  of  these  activities.  Human  capacities  develop 
out  of  themselves  and  according  to  their  own  nature  : 
experiences  are  the  cause  of  the  particular  form  and 


WHAT   EDUCATION    IS.  175 

content  of  the  development,  but  not  of  its  being  and 
fundamental  characteristics. 

A  typical  summary  definition  is  given  in  the  following 
passage :  "  Education  does  not  consist  in  a  series  of  ad- 
monitions and  corrections,  of  rewards  and  punishments, 
of  injunctions  and  directions,  strung  together  without 
unity  of  purpose,  or  dignity  of  execution ;  it  ought  to 
present  an  unbroken  chain  of  measures,  originating  in 
the  same  principle :  a  knowledge  of  the  constant  laws 
of  our  nature ;  practised  in  the  same  spirit :  a  spirit  of 
benevolence  and  firmness  ;  and  leading  to  the  same  end  : 
the  elevation  of  man  to  the  true  dignity  of  a  spiritual 
being"  {On  Infants  Education). 

Perhaps  the  clearest  and  fullest  expression  of  Pesta- 
lozzi's  view  of  the  organic  and  genetic  nature  of  edu- 
cation is  given  in  the  following:  "The  mechanism  of 
nature  is  everywhere  sublime  but  simple.  Imitate  it, 
oh  man  !  Imitate  nature,  that  from  the  seed  of  the 
greatest  tree  produces  at  first  nothing  but  a  hardly  per- 
ceptible growth,  which  slowly  and  insensibly  increasing 
from  day  to  day,  and  hour  to  hour,  gradually  develops 
into  trunk,  branches,  twigs  and  leaves.  Observe  care- 
fully how  nature  protects  and  strengthens  each  new  part 
as  it  is  developed,  that  it  may  serve  in  its  turn  as  the 
source  of  still  further  development. 

"  Observe  hov^7  the  flower  only  develops  after  having 
been  formed  in  the  heart  of  the  bud,  how  the  beauty  of 
its  first  days  soon  passes  away,  giving  place  to  the  fruit, 
as  yet  but  a  feeble  growth,  but  already  complete  in  its 
essential  features ;  and  how  for  months  this  fruit  hang- 
ing to  the  branch  which  nourishes  it,  grows  and  develops 
till  finally,  ripe  and  perfect,  it  falls  from  the  tree. 

"  Observe  how  nature  no  sooner  brings  the  first  shoot 


iy6  PESTALOZZI. 

above  the  ground  than  it  sends  forth  the  first  sprouting 
of  the  root,  and  gradually  carries  deep  into  the  bosom 
of  the  earth  the  noblest  part  of  the  tree  ;  how  by  a  subtle 
process  it  develops  the  stationary  trunk  from  the  very 
heart  of  the  root,  and  the  branches  from  the  heart  of  the 
trunk ;  how,  to  each  part,  no  matter  how  feeble  or  how 
subordinate,  it  supplies  the  necessary  nurture  —  yet 
there  is  nothing  useless,  inappropriate,  or  superfluous  " 
{How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

In  another  place  he  writes:  ''The  moral,  spiritual 
and  artistic  capabilities  of  our  nature  must  grow  out  of 
themselves".  "The  gardener  plants  and  waters,  but 
God  giveth  the  increase."  As  Raumer  well  remarks  on 
these  statements:  "It  is  not  the  educator  that  im- 
plants any  faculty  in  man  ;  it  is  not  the  educator  that 
gives  breath  and  life  to  any  faculty :  he  only  takes  care 
that  no  external  influence  shall  fetter  and  disturb  the 
natural  course  of  the  development  of  man's  individual 
faculties,"  and,  we  may  add,  does  all  that  learning,  wis- 
dom, practical  skill  and  opportunity  enable  him  to 
supply  the  best  of  everything  needed  for  the  best  de- 
velopment. 

Pestalozzi's  estimate  of  the  importance  of  the  organic 
and  genetic  elements  in  the  principles  of  education  was 
by  no  means  incidental  or  superficial :  he  grasped  both 
their  historical  and  scientific  values.  He  says :  "  Nature 
required  ages  to  raise  the  race  to  perfect  power  of  speech, 
yet  we  learn  this  art  in  a  few  months.  [But]  we  must 
take  exactly  the  same  course  as  nature  followed  with  the 
human  race."  Again  :  "  Apart  from  all  special  teach- 
ing, I  have  endeavoured  to  find  the  nature  of  teaching 
itself;  and  the  original  type  according  to  which  nature 
herself  has  determined  the  instruction  of  our  race  ". 


WHAT  EDUCATION    IS.  1 77 

Froebel  clearly  recognised  this  idea  of  organic  de- 
velopment in  Pestalozzi's  system.  Writing  to  the  Prin- 
cess Regent  of  Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt,  on  27th  April, 
i8og,  to  report  as  to  his  opinion  of  Pestalozzi's  prin- 
ciples and  work — ^Froebel  being  at  that  time  resident  in 
the  institution  of  Yverdon — he  says:  "  He  has  a  whole 
man  in  his  eye,  as  an  unseparated  and  inseparable 
whole,  and  in  all  that  he  does  and  wishes  to  do  for  him 
and  his  cultivation,  he  does  it  for  him  as  a  whole.  At  no 
time  does  he  act  only  for  the  development  of  one  power, 
leaving  the  others  without  nourishment ;  for  example, 
he  is  never  acting  for  the  mind  alone  and  leaving  un- 
considered, unsatisfied,  uncared  for,  inactive,  the  body 
and  the  soul,  all  the  powers  are  cared  for  at  all  times. 

"  But  often  one  or  other  of  the  three  great  divisions 
of  man's  nature  stands  forth  and  apparently  dominates 
the  others. 

"  Pestalozzi  takes  into  view  man  according  to  and  in 
his  manifestations,  according  to  the  laws  of  nature,  and 
those  which  are  grounded  in  the  mind  of  man,  when  he 
works  specially  upon  the  predominating  power  ;  it  is  not 
done  in  an  isolated  and  divided  way,  but  in  order  to 
work  through  his  treatment  upon  the  other  equal  but 
slumbering  and  resting  powers.  So,  for  example,  in  one 
and  the  same  epoch  upon  the  senses,  through  these 
upon  the  body,  and  through  these  again  upon  the 
feelings,  and  so  on  in  a  perpetual  round." 

Similarly  Herbart  writes:  "A  perfect  regularity  in 
the  sequence  of  studies  adapted  to  all  requirements  was 
to  me  the  ideal  which  I  looked  upon  as  the  ever  present 
means  of  ensuring  to  all  instruction  its  real  efficiency. 
It  was  the  discovery  of  this  sequence,  of  the  arrange- 
ment and  co-ordination  of  what  was  to  be  learned  con- 

12 


178  PESTALOZZI. 

temporaneously  and  what  consecutively,  which  formed, 
as  I  understood  it,  Pestalozzi's  chief  aim  "  (Herbart's 
letter  on  How  Gertrude  Teaches), 

Intellectual  education  is  declared  by  Pestalozzi  to  be 
the  pure  development  of  our  power  of  knowing — the 
reason — by  the  perfectly  simple  method  of  making  the 
use  of  the  reason  habitual.  Now  all  the  activities  of 
the  mind  are  exercised  upon  (i)  the  mental  results  of 
those  original  impressions  which  the  objects  of  the 
outer  world  make  upon  us,  and  (2)  the  analysing,  com- 
paring and  combining  of  such  mental  results.  Educa- 
tion must,  therefore,  be  based  upon,  imitate,  and  assist 
the  natural  processes  of  the  mind,  i.e.,  it  must  be  psy- 
chological. Pestalozzi  said :  "  I  want  to  psychologise 
education  ". 

V.  The  Process  of  Intellectual  Education. 

It  is  clear,  from  the  above,  that  the  starting-point  of 
intellectual  education  must  be  the  impressions  made 
upon  the  mind  by  experiences,  for  these  are  the  only 
materials  upon  which  mind  can  act ;  and  they  have,  so 
to  say,  a  compelling  force  to  which  the  mind  inevitably 
responds.  The  result  of  the  action  and  reaction,  be- 
tween the  mind  and  the  impression,  is  that  an  intel- 
lectual product  is  formed — an  idea.  To  illustrate  what 
Pestalozzi  means,  we  may  give  this  example  :  if  a  piece 
of  ice  is  put  into  the  hand  of  a  child  this  produces  a 
certain  effect  upon  consciousness,  which  we  express  by 
saying  that  the  mind  has  the  idea  of  coldness.  Of 
course  the  child  need  have  no  knowledge  of  the  name 
''coldness".  The  effect  upon  consciousness  is,  under 
ordinary  circumstances,  inevitable  and  absolute ;  and 
there  must  necessarily  be  set  up  in  the  mind  what  we 


INTUITION    THE   FOUNDATION    OF   EDUCATION.       1 79 

call  the  idea  of  coldness.  Such  fundamental  elements 
are  involved  in  all  ideas  ;  and  by  their  combinations  and 
relations  (through  judgment)  are  derived  complex  ideas. 

Thus  we  arrive  at  the  very  heart  and  centre  of  Pesta- 
lozzi's  theory  of  education.  All  mental  life  and  activity 
begins  in  this  way,  therefore  all  true  education  must 
begin,  continue  and  end  in  this  way.  He  speaks  of 
these  fundamental  processes  as  anschauung.  This  word 
has  been  variously  translated  into  English  as  (i)  intui- 
tion, (2)  sense-impression,  and  (3)  observation.  We 
shall  follow  Pestalozzi's  own  plan  and  use  all  three 
terms,  because  they  express  the  various  phases  of  its 
meaning,  viz.,  (i)  of  seemingly  direct  cognition  or  im- 
mediate knowing  ;  and  (2)  the  mediate  knowing  of  ex- 
ternal things,  for  which  there  must  be  both  observation 
and  sense-impression.  Pestalozzi,  in  one  place,  defines 
anschauung  thus:  "It  is  simply  the  actual  manifesta- 
tion of  external  things,  and  the  raising  in  consciousness 
the  impression  which  they  excite". 

This  original  or  native  capacity  for  knowing  is  well 
put  in  another  passage  in  which  Pestalozzi  says :  "  I 
endeavoured  to  investigate  the  exact  time  of  life  when 
instruction  begins,  and  I  soon  arrived  at  the  conviction 
that  the  first  hour  of  instruction  is  the  hour  of  birth  : 
the  first  tutor  is  nature  :  and  her  tuition  begins  from 
the  moment  when  the  child's  senses  are  opened  to  the 
impressions  of  the  surrounding  world.  The  feeling 
of  novelty  by  which  life  first  surprises  the  infant,  is  in 
itself  nothing  else  than  the  first  waking  up  of  the  capa- 
bility of  receiving  those  impressions.  It  is  the  arousing 
of  all  the  germs  of  physical  powers,  whose  growth  is 
completed,  and  whose  whole  energy  and  sole  tendency 
is  now  directed  towards  their  expansion  and  cultivation. 

12  * 


l8o  PESTALOZZI. 

The  animal  is  entirely  formed,  and  something  above  the 
animal  is  awakened  in  it,  which,  while  it  clearly  testi- 
fies the  destination  of  the  new-born  being  for  a  human 
existence,  gives  him  at  the  same  time  a  positive  impulse 
towards  the  attainment  of  that  purpose." 

That  the  wider  meaning  of  the  term  is  used  by  Pesta- 
lozzi  is  clearly  shown  by  his  own  statement :  "  Anschau- 
ung  is  the  immediate  and  direct  impression  produced 
by  the  world  on  our  inner  and  outer  senses,  i.e.,  the  im- 
pressions of  the  moral  world  on  our  moral  sense,  and  of 
the  physical  universe  on  our  bodily  senses  ". 

This,  so  to  say,  is  the  germ  form  of  knowing.  If  the 
mind  could  not  know  for  itself,  as  we  say,  it  could  not 
be  taught  to  know ;  any  more  than  a  blind  man  could 
be  taught  to  see.  As  Professor  James  says:  "The 
mere  existence  of  a  thing  outside  the  brain  is  not  a  suf- 
ficient cause  for  our  knowing  it :  it  must  strike  the  brain 
in  some  way,  as  well  as  be  there,  to  be  known.  But 
the  brain  being  struck,  the  knowledge  is  constituted  by 
a  new  construction  that  occurs  altogether  in  the  mind. 
.  .  .  And  when  once  there,  the  knowledge  may  remain 
there,  whatever  becomes  of  the  thing." 

Pestalozzi  has  expressed  his  own  view  of  the  import- 
ance of  this  in  education.  He  writes  :  "  If  I  look  back 
and  ask  myself  what  I  have  really  done  towards  the 
improvement  of  the  methods  of  elementary  instruction, 
I  find  that  in  recognising  intuition  as  the  absolute  basis 
of  all  knowledge,  I  have  established  the  first  and  most 
important  principle  of  instruction ;  and  that,  setting 
aside  all  particular  systems  of  instruction,  I  have  en- 
deavoured to  discover  what  ought  to  be  the  character 
of  the  instruction  itself,  and  what  are  the  fundamental 
laws  according  to  which  the  education  of  human  nature 


INTUITION    THE   FOUNDATION   OF   EDUCATION.       l8l 

must  be  determined  in  accordance  with  nature  ".  He 
also  remarks:  *' Intuition  is  the  absolute  basis  of  all 
knowledge ;  in  other  words,  all  knowledge  must  proceed 
from  intuition  and  must  admit  of  being  retraced  to  that 
source  "  (How  Gertrude  Teaches), 

To  use  an  illustration  to  emphasise  Pestalozzi's  point, 
we  may  say  that  he  argues  that  just  as  in  geometry 
(Euclid)  all  the  most  complex  and  important  proofs  and 
demonstrations  grow  out  of  the  axioms — which  are,  in 
fact,  intellectual  intuitions — and  postulates  and  must, 
in  the  last  resource,  be  resolvable  into  them ;  so  all  the 
higher  developments  of  thought  and  reason  are  based 
upon,  and  resolvable  into,  those  beginnings  of  knowledge 
which  he  called  intuitions. 

Now,  the  mind  not  only  does  achieve  these  intuitions, 
but  it  has,  so  to  say,  a  longing  and  a  desire  to  form 
them  as  often,  and  as  much,  as  possible.  Man  has  an 
inborn,  instinctive,  tendency  to  exercise,  to  the  fullest 
extent,  each  and  every  power  he  possesses.  As  Pesta- 
lozzi  so  well  expresses  it:  "We  attain  all  our  know- 
ledge through  the  infinite  charm  that  the  tree  of 
knowledge  has  for  the  sensibility  of  our  nature " 
{How  Gertrude  Teaches).  This  instinct  for  activity  is 
aroused  and  augmented  by  every  influence  which  acts 
upon  it,  as  well  as  by  its  own  native  impulses. 

Hence  we  may  say  that  the  learner  is,  in  a  sense,  able 
to  create  out  of  his  own  activities  an  organised  body  of 
knowledge  about  life.  Education,  from  this  point  of 
view,  is  simply  the  art  of  assisting  nature  in  its  efforts 
after  its  own  development.  This  is  the  reason  for  say- 
ing that  thought  must  be  developed  from  thinking. 
Thought  can  only  grow  out  of  what  it  is  into  what  we 
wish  it  to  be — its  better,  and  best,  forms.     We  must 


1 82  PESTALOZZI. 

start  all  intellectual  (and  other)  progress  from  the  be- 
ginnings which  the  child  makes — inevitably  and  neces- 
sarily makes — for  itself,  whenever  the  right  conditions 
are  present. 

"  It  is  life  that  educates,"  must  be  the  foundation 
principle  of  all  true  education,  i.e.,  such  as  is  in  har- 
mony with  Nature.  The  mere  opening  of  the  eyes, 
hearing  of  sounds,  touching  of  things,  and  so  on,  are  all 
educative  processes ;  but  they  are  not  necessarily  the 
best,  or  even  a  good,  form  of  education.  The  educator 
is  to  the  education  of  life,  what  the  gardener  is  to  the 
garden  :  he  removes  the  weeds  and  all  injurious  things  ; 
and  provides,  as  far  as  possible,  every  good  and  helpful 
condition  for  the  fullest  living  and  the  best  growth. 
But  the  growth  and  all  that  is  produced  is  of  the  living 
organism ;  the  man  can  only  influence  the  growth  and 
the  products — towards  perfection — by  making  the  con- 
ditions the  best  possible. 

Knowledge  comes,  through  intuitions,  in  several  differ- 
ent ways,  viz.,  (i)  By  Accident,  i.e.,  from  any  and  every 
impression  which  may  influence  the  individual  as  he  goes 
through  life.  Knowledge  so  gained  is,  necessarily,  more 
or  less  irregular,  confused,  of  slow  growth,  and  limited. 
(2)  From  Environment,  i.e.,  the  special  conditions  which 
immediately  surround  a  person.  This  is  largely  deter- 
mined by  parents  and  teachers,  and  its  value  will  depend 
upon  their  knowledge  and  skill  in  ordering  and  using 
the  surroundings.  (3)  From  Study,  i.e.,  the  self-directed 
search  for  knowledge.  Perceptions  thus  gained  are 
of  the  highest  possible  value  in  themselves,  and  will 
qualify  us  for  self-education.  (4)  From  Occupation,  which 
gives  us  chiefly  moral  perceptions,  or  ideas  of  duty, 
virtue  and  justice,     We  are  also  much  helped  towards 


HOW   KNOWLEDGE   GROWS.  1 83 

clear  ideas  by  knowledge  gained  in  this  way.  (5)  From 
Analogy  and  Reasonings  by  which  we  are  able  to  judge 
of  the  nature  of  things  which  have  never  directly  acted 
upon  our  minds,  by  making  a  constructive  (reasoned) 
use  of  the  knowledge  which  we  have  gained  from  im- 
mediate impressions  from  things.  We  are  able  to  get 
knowledge  from  knowledge  ;  e.g.y  a  child  who  has  learned 
to  observe  with  elementary  accuracy  only  a  few  farm- 
houses, and  accurately  to  express  such  observations  in 
words,  has  thereby  got  to  know  the  essential  parts  of 
architecture,  and  can  apply  his  ideas  to  the  under- 
standing of  buildings  which  he  has  never  seen  {How 
Gertrude  Teaches). 

Knowledge  passes  through  several  stages,  viz.,  from 
confused  to  definite  perceptions ;  from  definite  to  clear 
perceptions  ;  from  clear  perceptions  to  distinct  ideas. 
This  development  in  the  perfecting  of  our  ideas  is 
brought  about  by  grouping,  separating  and  comparing 
the  objects  of  perception.  Objects  often  impress  us  in 
such  a  way  that  only  some  of  their  unimportant  or  ac- 
cidental qualities  become  known  to  us.  Thus  we  may 
be  led  to  form  very  wrong,  or  misleading,  ideas  about 
them ;  but  by  grouping  objects  which  have  the  same 
essential  qualities,  our  insight  into  their  real  nature  is 
made  more  complete  and  correct,  and  we  are  much  less 
likely  to  be  led  astray  by  single  impressions. 

By  separating  and  comparing  objects  we  are  able  to 
arrive  at  the  simplest  elements  of  our  perceptions — and 
the  most  complex  perception  can  be  thus  reduced  to 
its  simplest  elements — and  so  to  raise  our  definite  and 
clear  conceptions  to  distinct  ideas.  There  is  no  need 
to  force  all  this  on  the  learner,  for  the  mind  itself  is  so 
constituted  that  it  involuntarily  and  irresistibly  desires 


1 84  PESTALOZZI. 

thus  to  obtain  distinct  ideas.  All  that  is  required  is 
that  sufficient  help  should  be  given  to  enable  the  pupil 
to  do  this  with  the  greatest  certainty  of  success. 

Since  intuition  is  the  foundation  of  all  knowledge  and, 
therefore,  of  the  higher  intellectual  processes,  viz.,  judg- 
ment and  reasoning,  it  is  most  important  that  our  in- 
tuitions should  be  accurate.  No  judgment  or  reasoning 
can  be  sound  and  complete  unless  the  intuitions  upon 
which  it  is  founded  are  full  and  perfect.  No  higher  step 
should,  therefore,  be  attempted  until  the  lower  ones 
are  thoroughly  known.  We  must  first  get  a  complete 
mastery  over  the  simple  elements,  and  a  facility  in  the 
use  of  them,  before  going  forward  to  something  more 
complex.  We  must  proceed  step  by  step  ;  each  step 
being  only  a  very  slight  addition  to  the  previous  one. 

Observation  is  the  great  instrument  in  the  formation 
of  perceptions  [of  external  things] ;  and  care  must  be 
taken  to  observe  the  best  and  most  characteristic 
specimens  of  any  class  of  things,  i.e.,  such  as  will  give 
a  correct  idea  of  the  real  thing  and  of  its  most  impor- 
tant qualities.  For  example,  a  lame,  one-eyed,  or  six- 
fingered  man  would  not  convey  a  proper  idea  of  the 
human  form.  When  a  suitable  specimen  has  been 
properly  observed,  there  arises  the  necessity  of  naming 
it ;  after  naming  it  we  proceed  to  discover  its  parts  and 
properties,  and  name  these,  i.e.,  describe  the  object ;  and, 
finally,  from  a  clear  description  of  it  we  draft  a  definition, 
i.e.,  an  expression  of  the  distinct  idea  of  the  object.  The 
accuracy  and  value  of  the  definition  will  obviously  de- 
pend upon  the  fulness  and  exactness  of  the  observation 
and  description ;  and  these  will,  in  turn,  depend  upon 
the  vitality  and  wisdom  of  the  method  of  training  of 
the  children  to  habits  of  observation. 


HOW   WE  GET  CLEAR  IDEAS.  1 85 

Pestalozzi  gives  an  emphatic  warning  against  the 
great  danger  of  substituting  mere  talks  for  real  observa- 
tions. He  says:  "  It  is  a  mere  fallacy  to  conclude,  or 
to  pretend,  that  knowledge  has  been  acquired  from 
the  fact  that  terms  have  been  memorised,  which,  if 
rightly  understood,  convey  the  expression  of  knowledge. 
This  condition  if  rightly  understood,  which  is  the  most 
material,  is  the  most  generally  overlooked.  .  .  .  To 
guard  against  an  error  of  this  kind,  the  first  rule  is  to 
teach  always  by  things  rather  than  by  words.  Let 
there  be  as  few  objects  as  possible  named  to  the  child, 
unless  you  are  prepared  to  show  the  objects  themselves. 
...  Of  objects  which  cannot  be  brought  before  the 
child  in  reality,  pictures  should  be  introduced  "  {On 
Infants'  Education). 

We  should  not,  in  the  early  stages,  make  use  of  any 
truths  which  are  not  the  outcome  of  our  own  intuitions. 
Every  truth  which  is  presented  to  the  learner  through 
verbal  forms,  and  is  not  based  in  its  essential  elements 
on  his  own  perceptions,  remains,  so  to  say,  in  the  air — 
it  has  no  means  of  really  and  truly  connecting  itself,  in 
the  child's  mind,  with  that  to  which  it  relates.  Endless 
truths  so  presented  to  the  mind  have  far  less  educative 
influence  on  the  development  of  thought  than  a  single 
one  based  upon  actual  perception. 

Pestalozzi  sums  up  by  saying  that  he  found  "  that  all 
our  knowledge  proceeds  from  three  elementary  powers: 
(i)  from  the  power  of  making  sounds  :  the  origin  of  lan- 
guage ;  (2)  from  the  indefinite,  simple  sense-power  of 
forming  images,  out  of  which  springs  the  consciousness 
of  all  forms  ;  and  (3)  from  the  definite,  but  no  longer  mere 
sense-power,  of  imagination,  from  which  must  be  derived 
the  consciousness  of  unity,  and  therewith  the  ability 


1 86  PESTALOZZI. 

for  calculating  and  reckoning.  .  .  .  The  art  of  educat- 
ing the  race  must  be  based  upon  the  first  and  simplest 
results  of  these  three  foundation-powers  :  sound,  form 
and  number  .  .  .  recognised  by  Nature  herself  as  the 
common  starting-point  of  all  instruction. 

"  In  consequence  of  this  recognition  they  must  be  in- 
corporated in  forms  which,  universally  and  harmoniously, 
arise  from  the  results  of  the  three  elementary  powers  of 
our  nature,  and  which  tend,  essentially  and  surely,  to 
make  all  instruction  a  steady  and  unbroken  develop- 
ment of  these  fundamental  powers,  used  in  common 
and  regarded  as  equally  important.  Only  in  this  way 
is  it  at  all  possible  to  lead  us,  in  all  three  branches, 
from  obscure  to  definite  sense-impressions,  from  definite 
sense-impressions  to  clear  images,  and  from  clear  images 
to  distinct  ideas.  Here  ...  I  find  the  Art  [of  Educa- 
tion] ...  a  common  basis  of  all  the  methods  and  arts 
of  instruction.  .  .  .  Through  knowing  the  unity,  and 
form,  and  name  of  any  object,  the  knowledge  of  it  he- 
comes  precise ;  by  gradually  learning  its  other  attributes 
the  knowledge  of  it  becomes  clear ;  and  through  con- 
sciousness of  its  totality  the  knowledge  becomes  distinct" 
{How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

In  building  up  complete  perceptions — the  results  of 
complete  sense-impressions  of  all  the  parts  of  an  object 
— the  following  points  should  be  observed :  (i)  The 
process  should  be  very  gradual,  and  each  step  com- 
pletely and  indelibly  fixed  in  the  mind.  (2)  All  our 
perceptions  should  be  related  in  our  minds  in  a  way 
exactly  resembling  the  relation  of  the  actual  objects  in 
nature.  (3)  All  subordinates  and  non-essentials  in  real 
things  should  be  represented  in  our  minds  by  percep- 
tions which   are   regarded   as  subordinates   and    non- 


HOW   WE   GET   CLEAR   IDEAS.  iS/ 

essentials.  (4)  Impressions  of  important  things  should 
be  made  clearer  and  stronger  by  bringing  the  objects 
near  and  letting  them  act  on  the  various  senses.  Let 
it  not  be  forgotten,  e.g.,  that  the  perception  of  size  de- 
pends upon  the  nearness  or  remoteness  of  physical 
objects.  (5)  All  actions  of  physical  things  should  be 
regarded  as  absolutely  necessary  :  as  the  manifestations 
of  the  power  which  unites  the  seemingly  diverse  ele- 
ments which  compose  things,  and  which  acts  so  that  the 
things  may  fulfil  their  proper  functions.  (6)  Regard  this 
physical  necessity  as,  nevertheless,  having  the  elements 
of  freedom  and  independence. 

Pestalozzi  believed  that  these  steps  in  the  develop- 
ment of  complete  perceptions  are  based  upon  the  essen- 
tial laws  of  nature,  and  have,  collectively,  a  threefold 
source.  The  first  source  is  nature  itself,  through  the 
power  of  which  the  mind  rises  from  vague  sense-im- 
pressions to  clear  ideas.  Herein  are  the  foundations  of 
the  laws  which  give  these  educational  principles,  (i) 
All  sense-impressions,  in  so  far  as  they  come  from  the 
essential  nature  of  an  object,  help  to  form  correct  ideas  ; 
whilst  in  so  far  as  they  belong  to  the  accidental  qualities 
of  an  object  they  are  sources  of  error;  (2)  to  correct 
ideas  thus  formed,  and  firmly  impressed  on  the  mind, 
many  related  sense-impressions  can  be  easily — as  it 
were  involuntarily — added ;  (3)  the  more  strongly  a 
correct  idea  is  impressed,  the  more  easily  it  develops 
rightly :  and  the  more  strongly  a  wrong  idea  is  im- 
pressed, the  more  it  develops  wrongly;  (4)  by  associat- 
ing like  ideas,  gained  from  like  objects,  insight  into 
their  inner  truth  becomes  essentially  and  universally 
deeper,  clearer  and  surer :  one-sided  and  biassed  im- 
pressions are  thereby  weakened ;  and  incomplete  and 


1 88  PESTALOZZT. 

wrong  views  are  avoided ;  (5)  the  most  complex  sense- 
impressions  are  based  upon  simple  ones :  make  clear 
the  simple,  and  the  complex  will  become  simple ;  (6) 
the  more  senses  employed  in  getting  impressions  of  a 
thing,  the  more  accurate  will  be  the  knowledge  of  it. 
These  truths  rest  upon  the  nature  of  physical  things 
and  the  nature  of  the  mind. 

The  second  source  is  the  power  of  sense-impression, 
which  is  intimately  interwoven  with  the  sensibility  of 
our  nature.  This  acts  in  two  ways :  firstly,  in  our 
desiring  to  experience  and  know  everything  ;  and 
secondly,  in  our  desiring  to  enjoy  everything.  The 
former  stimulates  to  activity  whilst  the  latter  tends  to 
passivity ;  and  they,  so  far,  counteract  each  other.  The 
former  arouses  curiosity,  whilst  the  latter  secures  an 
opportunity  for  calm  judgment.  The  former  collects 
knowledge,  the  latter  ripens  it. 

The  third  source  lies  in  the  relation  of  our  outer  cir- 
cumstance to  our  perceiving-power.  Man,  so  to  say, 
makes  his  own  world  out  of  the  circumstances  by  which 
he  is  surrounded :  he  learns  all  the  realities  of  the 
world,  in  their  merely  physical  aspects,  wholly  in  the 
measure  that  the  objects  of  the  world  which  come  to 
him  through  intuition  [sense-impression]  approach  the 
centre  in  which  he  spins  and  weaves — for  he  is  like  a 
spider  which  is  bound  to  the  centre  of  the  web  which 
he  spins  himself.     Growth  is  adaptation  to  environment. 

This  outline,  drawn  from  How  Gertrude  Teaches,  gives 
us  a  bird's-eye  view  of  Pestalozzi's  educational  psy- 
chology. He  endeavours  to  work  out  these  laws  and 
principles  in  his  methods  of  teaching,  and  we  can  better 
understand  what  he  means  by  them  by  discovering  how 
he  applies  them  to  practical  education.     The  correspon- 


HOW  WE   GET   CLEAR   IDEAS.  1 89 

dence  of  his  views  with  those  of  modern  psychologists 
— always  remembering  that  Pestalozzi  was  a  pioneer — 
concerning  the  following  points,  is  well  worth  particular 
attention :  that  the  law  of  evolution  prevails  in  all 
things :  that  development  is  organic  and  genetic  :  that 
ideas  are  developed  through  sense-impressions  and  per- 
cepts :  that  sense  life  is  a  susceptibility  to  external  in- 
fluences and  all  mental  life  is  a  striving  to  know :  and 
that  all  growth  is  an  adaptation  to  environment. 

From  the  consideration  of  the  general  laws  of  nature 
and  mind,  so  far  as  they  concern  the  processes  of  educa- 
tion, Pestalozzi  proceeds  to  what  he  regards  as  the  laws 
which  govern  the  action  of  mind  as  a  thinking  organism. 

The  most  potent  means  for  making  our  perceptions 
clear  and  distinct,  is  the  use  of  our  knowledge  of  number, 
form  and  language.  When  a  confused  mass  of  objects 
is  brought  to  our  notice,  we  can  only  hope  to  make  it 
clear  and  intelligible  to  ourselves  by  asking:  (i)  how 
many  things,  and  how  many  kinds  of  things,  are  there  ? 
(2)  what  is  their  appearance :  their  shape  or  outline  ? 
and  (3)  what  are  the  names  and  words  which  describe 
each  ?  The  reason  for  this,  says  Pestalozzi,  is  that 
"  All  possible  objects  necessarily  have  number,  form 
and  name ;  but  the  remaining  properties  which  the 
senses  enable  us  to  perceive  are  not  possessed  by  an 
object  in  common  with  all  others,  but  one  property  is 
shared  with  one  object,  and  another  property  with 
another  object  ".  He  adds  that  all  the  other  qualities 
of  things,  which  are  made  known  to  us  by  the  senses, 
can  be  directly  connected  with  the  three  elements : 
number,  form  and  language.  These  are,  according  to 
Pestalozzi,  the  Necessary  Forms  of  Thought. 

In  his  letters  On  Infants'  Education  he  writes  about 


190  PESTALOZZI. 

"those  exercises,  which  were  adopted  at  my  suggestion, 
as  calculated  to  employ  the  mind  usefully,  and  to  pre- 
pare it  for  further  pursuits,  by  eliciting  thought  and 
forming  the  intellect.  I  would  call  them  preparatory 
exercises,  in  more  than  one  respect.  They  embrace  the 
elements  of  number,  form  and  language ;  and  whatever 
ideas  we  may  have  to  acquire  in  the  course  of  our  life, 
they  are  all  introduced  through  the  medium  of  one  of 
these  three  departments. 

'*The  relations  and  proportions  of  number  and  form 
constitute  the  natural  measure  of  all  those  impressions 
which  the  mind  receives  from  without.  They  are  the 
measures,  and  comprehend  the  qualities,  of  the  material 
world  ;  form  being  the  measure  of  space,  and  number 
the  measure  of  time.  Two  or  more  objects,  dis- 
tinguished from  each  other,  as  existing  separately  in 
space,  pre-suppose  an  idea  of  their  forms,  or  in  other 
words,  of  the  exact  space  which  they  occup)^ ;  dis- 
tinguished from  each  other  as  existing  at  different 
times,  they  come  under  the  denomination  of  number." 

Speaking  of  the  foundation  idea — Anschaming — of  all 
Pestalozzi's  thought  and  work,  Herbart  calls  it  "  the 
grand  idea  (Anschaming)  of  the  genial,  the  noble  Pesta- 
lozzi  ".  He  adds  :  "The  discoverer  has  worked  out  the 
same  for  only  a  narrow  sphere,  that  of  elementary  edu- 
cation ;  it  belongs,  however,  to  the  whole  of  educa- 
tion, but  it  needs  for  that  an  extended  development ". 
Herbart  himself  endeavoured  to  supply  this  extension  in 
his  educational  writings. 

VI.  The  Work  of  the  Teacher  as  Educator. 

From  Pestalozzi's  theories  and  principles  of  education 
it  is  quite  clear  what  the  function  of  the  true  educator 


THE   teacher's    FUNCTION.  I9I 

is ;  but  Pestalozzi  has  also  told  us  in  set  terms  what  he 
considers  it  to  be.  It  will  be  sufficient  for  us  to  give 
extracts  from  his  writings,  leaving  the  reader  to  relate 
them  to  what  has  gone  before. 

The  educator's  work  consists  "  in  a  continual  benevo- 
lent superintendence,  with  the  aim  of  calling  forth  all 
the  powers  which  Providence  has  implanted  in  man. 
.  .  .  Giving  a  helping  hand  to  the  instinctive  efforts 
after  self-development. 

"  The  art  of  instruction  consists  in  removing  the  con- 
fusion of  the  indefinite  succession  of  preceptions,  by 
distinguishing  the  objects  from  each  other,  and  reunit- 
ing those  that  are  analogous  or  related  to  each  other,  in 
one  idea,  which  is  to  comprehend  them  all ;  and  present 
them  to  the  mind  in  that  clearness  and  distinctness 
which  is  obtained  by  separating  their  essential  and 
common  properties  from  the  accidental  peculiarities  of 
each  single  object.  First  he  must  detach  each  percep- 
tion from  those  with  which  it  is,  in  nature,  interwoven  ; 
then  he  must  [get  the  child  to]  observe  each  single  per- 
ception through  all  the  variations  and  changes  to  which 
it  is  liable  ;  and,  lastly,  he  must  [get  the  child  to]  de- 
termine its  proper  place  in  the  circle  of  knowledge 
which  has  been  already  acquired ;  so  that  he  advances 
progressively  from  confusion  to  distinctness,  from  dis- 
tinctness to  clearness,  and  from  clearness  to  insight " 
{How  Gertrude  Teaches), 

In  connection  with  this  selective  function  of  the  edu- 
cator Pestalozzi  gives  an  interesting  concrete  example. 
He  says  that  it  is  undesirable  for  children  to  go  into  the 
woods  and  meadows  in  order  to  learn  about  trees  and 
plants.  "  Trees  and  plants  do  not  there  stand  in  the 
order  best  adapted  to  make  the  character  of  each  class 


192  PESTALOZZI. 

apparent ;  and  to  prepare  the  mind  by  the  first  impres- 
sions of  the  objects  for  a  general  acquaintance  with  this 
department  of  science  "  {How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

The  only  way  to  help  children  ''to  a  real  develop- 
ment of  their  mental  faculties  is  :  (i)  Gradually  to  en- 
large the  sphere  of  their  intuition,  i.e.,  to  increase  the 
number  of  objects  falling  under  their  own  immediate 
perception.  (2)  To  impress  upon  them  those  percep- 
tions of  which  they  have  become  conscious  with  cer- 
tainty, clearness  and  precision.  (3)  To  impart  to  them 
a  comprehensive  knowledge  of  language,  for  the  ex- 
pression of  whatever  has  become,  or  is  becoming,  an 
object  of  their  consciousness,  in  consequence  either  of 
the  spontaneous  impulse  of  their  own  nature,  or  of  the 
assistance  of  instruction  "  {How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

The  educator  must  find  out  the  objects  best  suited  to 
call  forth  every  sense :  the  actions  which  shall  arouse 
the  activity  of  every  faculty  of  the  child :  the  proper 
gradation  of  the  simplicity  and  complexity  of  such 
objects  and  actions,  so  that  they  shall  be  in  accordance 
with  the  increasing  capacity  of  the  senses,  and  the  ex- 
tension of  the  powers.  Both  objects  and  actions  should 
be  presented  in  attractive,  powerful  and  pleasant  forms. 
If  this  be  done  the  effects  will  be  most  truly  educative  ; 
and  the  child  will  be  as  animated  and  happy  in  its 
school  hours  as  in  its  playtime.  If  the  food  necessary 
for  fulness  of  life  is  properly  presented  it  is  only  neces- 
sary to  lead  children,  never  to  drive  them,  to  it. 

Since  the  beginning  of  the  human  race,  men  have 
been  trying  to  make  easier  the  progress  of  the  learner 
from  the  elements  of  the  culture  of  the  power  of  intuition 
to  the  elements  of  the  culture  of  the  power  of  thought ; 
and  at  raising  the  common  sense  which  is  gained  by  the 


THE   TEACHER'S   FUNCTION.  I93 

simple  perception  of  objects  of  Nature  to  the  level  of 
the  logical  certainty  of  the  power  of  thought  and  judg- 
ment.    The  educator  has  to  continue  this. 

The  work  of  the  educator  is  to  see  that  the  child's 
human  instincts  are  exercised  in  human  affairs ;  and  to 
do  this  by  causing  self-activity  and  self-realisation  from 
within,  not  by  dictating  or  enforcing  a  cut-and-dried 
system  from  without.  He  must  secure  the  positive 
quickening  of  what  is  good  ;  not  the  mere  repression  of 
what  is  evil,  in  the  child.  Truth  must  be  so  cultivated 
that  falsehood  is,  as  it  were,  crowded  out :  the  intellec- 
tual and  moral  powers  must  be  made  so  strong  that  the 
sensuous  powers  are  overwhelmed.  In  the  mind  of  the 
educator  there  must  always  be  the  clear  and  conscious 
aim  of  serving  the  divine  nature  in  the  child,  so  as  to 
help  it  to  its  full  development,  and  in  no  way  to  hinder 
or  harm  it.  But  the  educator  must  serve  only  the 
life  and  the  law  of  the  child's  nature,  not  its  whims 
or  its  personal  preferences. 

Instruction  must  be  given  through  a  series  of  exer- 
cises so  graduated  by  the  educator,  that  the  starting- 
point  is,  in  every  case,  well  within  the  comprehension 
of  the  pupil ;  and  the  consecutive  progress  through  the 
series  must  always  exercise  the  pupil's  powers,  without 
exhausting  them,  so  that  there  is  a  continuous,  easy 
and  attractive  progress,  in  which  knowledge  and  the 
practical  application  of  it  are  always  closely  connected. 

In  concluding  this  study  of  Pestalozzi  as  a  thinker 
we  will  give  five  outline  summaries  of  his  theory  of  edu- 
cation. Three  of  these  are  by  men  who  knew  Pesta- 
lozzi  well,  and  worked  with  him — Fischer,  Niederer 
and  Dr.  Mayo  ;  and  two  of  them  are  by  able  commenta- 
tors on  Pestalozzi's  theories — Morf  and  Payne, 

13 


194 


PESTALOZZI. 


FISCHER. 


I.  To  give  the  mind  an 
intensive  culture,  and  not 
simply  extensive :  to  in- 
crease the  strength  and  skill 
of  all  the  powers  of  the 
mind,  and  not  to  content 
oneself  vi^ith  furnishing  it 
■with  many  and  various 
ideas. 


2.  To  furnish  the  mind 
with  fundamental  data, 
mother  ideas,  for  all  its 
operations. 


3.  To  connect  all  in- 
struction with  the  study  of 
language. 

4.  To  simplify  the  me- 
chanism of  instruction  and 
study. 

5.  To  popularise  science. 


NIEDERER. 


I.  The  aim  is  the  de- 
velopment of  man  as  a 
whole,  with  all  his  moral, 
physical,  and  intellectual 
powers  ;  the  particular 
lines  of  the  development 
depending  upon  his  posi- 
tion in  the  world — in  other 
words,  upon  the  actual  life 
that  awaits  him. 


2.  The  starting-point  of 
the  exercises  in  instruction 
is  to  be  found  in  the  notions 
the  child  has  already  ac- 
quired, in  his  present 
tastes,  needs  and  powers. 


3.  The  comiection  of  the 
exercises  in  instruction  is 
the  order  in  which  they 
follow  each  other,  which 
order  must  be  so  carefully 
graduated  that  each  exer- 
cise shall  give  the  child  the 
desire  and  the  power  to  do 
the  next. 


MAYO. 

,  I.  Education  should  be 
essentially  religious :  Its 
end  and  aim  should  be 
to  lead  a  creature,  born 
for  immortality,  to  that 
conformity  to  the  image 
of  God  in  which  the  glory 
and  happiness  of  immor- 
tality consists. 

2.  It  should  be  essen- 
tially moral — Moral  in- 
struction, to  be  availing, 
must  be  the  purified  and 
elevated  expression  of  a 
moral  life,  actually  per- 
vading the  scene  of  edu- 
cation. 

3.  It  must  be  directed 
by  an  influence  essenti- 
ally parental. 

4.  It  should  be  essen- 
tially organic  —  the  de- 
velopment of  the  human 
faculties  (moral,  intel- 
lectual and  physical) 
from  within,  by  a  pro- 
cess of  expansion  and 
growth  ;  through  self- 
activity  and  liberty. 

I  5.  The  development  of 
all  the  faculties  should  be 
harmonious  :  to  preserve 
the  equipoise  within  the 
mental,  moral  and  physi- 
cal spheres,  and  between 
the  three. 

6.  It  should  be  based 
^on  intuitions. 

7.  It  should  be  gradual 
and  progressive — every 
age  has  its  own  mental, 
moral  and  physical 
claims. 

8.  It  should  be  free  and 
natural,  not  cramped, 
confined  and  servile. 

g.  It  should  be  analyti- 
cal—  everything   taught 
.  should  be  reduced  to  its 
^simplest  elements. 


OUTLINE  SUMMARIES. 


195 


MORF. 


I.  The  foundation  of  in- 
struction is  intuition  [An- 
sckauung-,  i.e.,  the  effect  of 
outward  objects  on  the 
senses,  and  the  effect  on 
the  consciousness  of  the 
impressions  made  on  the 
senses  by  outward  objects]. 


2.  Language  must  be  con- 
nected with  intuition. 


3.  The  time  for  learning 
is  not  the  time  for  judging 
and  criticising. 


4.  In  each  branch,  in-"" 
struction  must  begin  with 
the  simplest  elements,  and 
proceed  step  by  step  ac- 
cording to  the  development 
of  the  child,  i.e.,  by  a 
sequence  of  steps  which  are 
psychologically  connected. 

5.  Instruction  must  fol- 
low the  path  of  develop- 
ment not  that  of  lecturing 
or  telling. 

6.  Instruction  must  be 
subordinated  to  the  end  of 
education.  J 


PAYNE. 

1.  The  principles  of  education  are  not  to  be  devised 
ad  extra  ;  they  are  to  be  sought  for  in  human  nature. 

2.  This  nature  is  an  organic  nature — a  plexus  of 
bodily,  intellectual  and  moral  capabilities,  ready  for 
development,  and  struggling  to  develop  themselves. 

3.  Self-development  begins  with  the  impressions 
received  by  the  mind  from  external  objects.    These 
impressions  (called  sensations),  when  the  mind  be- 
comes conscious  of  them,    group  themselves  into 
I  perceptions.      These  are  registered  in  the  mind  as 
\  conceptions  or  ideas,  and  constitute  that  elementary 
I  knowledge  which  is  the  basis  of  all  knowledge, 
j      4.  All  education  (including  instruction)  must  be 
I  grounded  on  the  learner's  own  observation  [An- 
I  schauung)  at  first  hand — on  his  own  personal  ex- 
Lperience.     This  is  the  true  basis  of  all  knowledge. 

4  [cont.).  First   the    reality,   then  the   symbol  ; 
first  the  thing,  then  the  word,  not  vice  versa. 

5.  That  which  the  learner  has  gained  by  his  own 
observation  and  which,  as  a  part  of  his  personal 
■<  experience  is  incorporated  with  his  mind,  he  knows 
and  can  describe  or  explain  in  his  own  words.  His 
competency  to  do  this  is  the  measure  of  the  ac- 
curacy of  his  observation,  and  consequently  of  his 
knowledge. 

6.  The  education  conducted  by  the  formal  educator 
has  both  a  negative  and  a  positive  side.  The  former 
consists  in  removing  impediments,  so  as  to  afford 
scope  for  the  learner's  self-development.  The  latter 
is  to  stimulate  the  learner  to  the  exercise  of  his 
powers,  to  furnish  materials  and  occasion  for  the 
exercise,  and  to  superintend  and  maintain  the  action 
of  the  machinery. 


7.  Personal  experience  necessitates  the  advance- 
ment of  the  learner's  mind  from  the  near  and  actual, 
with  which  he  is  in  contact,  and  which  he  can  deal 
with  himself,  to  the  more  remote  ;  therefore  from  the 
concrete  to  the  abstract,  from  particulars  to  generals, 
from  the  known  to  the  unknown.  This  is  the  method 
of  elementary  education  ;  the  opposite  proceeding — 
the  usual  proceeding  of  our  traditional  teaching  .  .  . 
is  the  scientific  method — a  method  suited  only  to  the 
advanced  learner,  who,  it  assumes,  is  already  trained 
by  the  elementary  method. 


13 


196 


PESTALOZZI. 


MORF. 

7.  The  instructor  must 
dwell  upon  each  step  long 
enough  to  ensure  that  the 
child  gets  a  thorough  grasp 
of,  and  control  over,  the  new 
matter. 

8.  The  chief  aim  of  ele- 
mentary instruction  is  to 
develop  and  increase  the 
powers  of  the  child's  mind, 
not  the  acquisition  of  know- 
ledge or  skill. 

9.  With  knowledge  must 
come  power,  with  informa- 
tion skill, 

10.  The  relations  between 
educator  and  pupil,  and 
school  discipline  in  par- 
ticular, must  be  based  on 
and  controlled  by  love. 

11.  The  individuality  of 
the  pupil  must  be  sacred  to 
the  educator. 


PAYNE. 

8.  Practical  aptness  or  faculty,  depends  more  on 
habits  gained  by  the  assiduous  oft-repeated  exercise 
of  the  learner's  active  powers  than  on  knowledge 
alone.  Knowing  and  doing  must,  however,  proceed 
together.  The  chief  aim  of  all  education  (including 
instruction)  is  the  development  of  the  learner's  powers. 


9.  Spontaneity  and  self-activity  are  the  necessary 
conditions  under  which  the  mind  educates  itself  and 
gains  power  and  independence. 


CHAPTER  XL 

PESTALOZZrS  METHODS  OF  TEACHING  LANGUAGE, 
FORM  AND  NUMBER. 

In  describing  the  methods  which  Pestalozzi  used  in 
teaching  the  above  subjects,  we  shall  take  the  subjects 
in  the  order  of  importance  and  value  which  he  appeared 
to  attach  to  them.  "The  impression  made  on  the 
senses  by  form  and  number  precedes  the  art  of  speech, 
but  the  art  of  sense-impression  and  arithmetic  come 
after  the  art  of  speech."  Although  he  says  that  "  what- 
ever ideas  we  may  have  to  acquire  in  the  course  of  our 
life  are  all  introduced  through  the  medium  of  one  of 
these  departments,"  i.e.^  number,  form  and  language  ; 
this  does  not  mean,  as  it  at  first  seems  to  suggest,  that 
reading,  writing  and  arithmetic  are  to  be  regarded  as 
the  foundations  of  education. 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  he  says  that  "  Upon 
these  three  fundamental  points  [number,  form  and 
language]  all  elementary  instruction  is  to  be  built :  and 
it  is  evident,  therefore,  that  the  object  of  our  first  exer- 
tions in  education  must  be  to  develop  and  strengthen, 
in  that  manner  which  is  most  conformable  to  nature, 
the  faculties  of  number,  of  form,  and  of  language,  since 
upon  the  healthy  state,  as  it  were,  of  those  faculties, 
the  correctness  of  our  perceptions  essentially  depends  "  ; 
his  experience  convinced  him  that  reading,  writing  and 

197 


198  PESTALOZZI. 

arithmetic,  far  from  being  the  foundation  elements  of 
instruction,  ought  to  be  regarded  as  subordinate  ones. 
"  It  is  well  done  to  make  a  child  read,  and  write,  and 
learn,  and  repeat — but  it  is  still  better  to  make  a  child 
think"  {On  Infants'  Education), 

This  apparent  contradiction  is  easily  explained :  the 
elements  of  knowledge  in  number,  form  and  language 
must  first  be  learned,  before  they  can  be  used  in  getting 
further  knowledge.  How  are  these  to  be  learned  ?  As 
we  shall  see,  when  dealing  with  them,  they  are  to  be 
learned  through  acquiring  and  developing  intuitions,  i.e., 
by  means  of  what  we  now  call  object  lessons.  The 
"Three  R's  "  are  taught  through  object  lessons:  there- 
fore the  latter  is  primary,  and  the  former  secondary. 
As  Pestalozzi  puts  it :  *'  There  are  two  ways  of  in- 
structing :  either  we  go  from  words  to  things,  or  from 
things  to  words.     Mine  is  the  second  method." 

I.  Language  "Teaching — or  the  Teaching  of  Sound 
through  Object  Lessons. 

Pestalozzi  says :  "  In  teaching  the  child  language  we 
ought  to  follow  the  same  course  which  nature  took. 
Nature  undoubtedly  began  with  intuition.  The  first 
simple  sound  by  which  man  attempted  to  communicate 
the  impression  produced  upon  him  by  some  object,  was 
the  expression  of  an  intuition.  .  .  .  From  this  point 
language  gradually  advanced :  man  began  to  observe 
the  characteristic  features  of  those  objects  to  which  he 
had  given  names,  and  to  form  words  to  designate  their 
proportions,  their  actions,  and  their  powers.  It  was 
not  until  a  much  later  period  that  he  invented  the  art 
of  modifying  one  and  the  same  word  according  to 
number,  time,  and  so  on."     Again:  "The  savage  first 


LANGUAGE-TEACHING.  I99 

names  the  object,  then  draws  it,  and  then  connects  it 
very  simply — after  first  learning  its  qualities,  varying 
according  to  time  and  circumstance — with  words, 
through  terminations  and  combinations,  so  as  to  be 
able  to  define  it  more  closel}^ "  {How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

Before  children  are  ready  to  learn  to  read,  they  must 
have  learnt  to  talk ;  and  to  do  this  they  must  be  taught 
to  feel  and  to  think.  There  must  be  a  considerable 
development  in  general  knowledge,  through  percep- 
tions ;  and  in  knowledge  of  language,  through  speak- 
ing ;  before  we  begin  to  teach  reading  or  letters.  The 
study  of  language  is  analysable  into :  (i)  the  study  of 
sounds,  i.e.,  phonetics  by  which  the  several  organs  of 
speech  are  developed ;  (2)  the  study  of  words,  i.e.,  the 
means  of  teaching  a  knowledge  of  individual  objects  ; 
and  (3)  the  study  of  speech,  i.e.,  the  means  of  teaching 
composition,  or  the  correct  method  of  expressing  all  that 
is  known  about  objects  and  their  qualities.  Language 
thus  taught  has  its  highest  value  in  helping  the  learner 
to  clearness  of  conception.  The  ignorance  of  the  lower 
classes  is  mainly  owing  to  the  fact  that  they  have  not 
thus  been  taught  how  to  speak. 

The  development  of  the  faculty  of  language  is  in- 
separably associated  with  the  development  of  the  faculty 
of  intuition.  It  is  only  as  a  child  gets  fuller  and  more 
exact  intuitions  that  he  can  get  a  greater  and  more  pre- 
cise use  of  language.  The  way  to  extend  a  child's 
command  of  language  is  to  increase  and  quicken  his 
power  of  intuition.  The  mere  sounds  of  language  are 
empty  and  barren ;  it  is  only  when  they  are  consciously 
connected  with  the  contents  of  intuitions  that  they 
become  true  human  speech.  Here  also  it  is  life  that 
educates ;   and   the   training   in    language,   that   is   in 


200  PESTALOZZI. 

intuition,  must  be  directly  connected  with  the  home-life 
and  ordinary  activities  of  the  learner. 

Teaching  in  the  rules  of  grammar  should  come  at  the 
end  of  the  study  of  language,  not  at  the  beginning. 
Our  first  business  is  to  learn  how  to  talk,  and  how  to 
understand  talk,  in  the  above-mentioned  sense.  The 
rules  of  grammar  will  enable  us  to  test  our  attainments 
in  these  two  points. 

Language  is  a  connecting  link  between  intuition  and 
thought  proper:  "Intuition  and  thought  are  separated 
by  a  great  gulf  which  can  be  bridged  over  only  by 
speech "  {Swan's  Song).  All  advanced  and  complex 
thought  is  dependent  on  language,  just  as  higher  work 
in  number  is  dependent  on  algebraic  symbols.  The 
three  faculties  of  perception,  language  and  thought 
constitute  the  sum.  of  the  means  of  intellectual  educa- 
tion. Pestalozzi's  own  words  are :  "  The  mind  is  de- 
prived of  its  first  instrument  or  organ,  as  it  were,  its 
functions  are  interrupted,  and  its  ideas  confused,  when 
there  is  a  want  of  perfect  acquaintance  and  mastery  of 
at  least  one  language.  .  .  .  The  child  cannot  become 
distinctly  conscious  of  its  intuitions  and  impressions  of 
Nature  without  language  "  (On  Infants'  Education). 

The  direct  connection  of  intuition  with  the  study  of 
language  is  seen  in  the  fact  that  the  naming  of  objects 
gives  us  nouns ;  the  words  which  express  the  qualities 
of  objects  are  adjectives ;  the  words  which  express  the 
movements,  etc.,  of  things  are  verbs ;  and  so  on  for  the 
other  parts  of  speech.  We  acquire,  through  language, 
the  ability  to  define  the  qualities  of  things  ;  and  to  make 
changes  in  these — caused  by  change  of  conditions — 
clear  to  ourselves,  by  changing  the  words  themselves 
and  their  arrangement.     A  proper  system  of  teaching 


LANGUAGE-TEACHING.  201 

language  will,  without  using  any  of  the  technical  terms 
of  grammar,  yet  give  all  the  facts  of  grammar  through 
developing  intuitions  of  objects. 

Pestalozzi's  method  was  to  take  from  the  dictionary 
the  names  of  certain  common  things,  and  also  those 
words  which  described  the  most  striking  quaHties  pos- 
sessed by  the  things — nouns  and  adjectives — as  a  basis 
for  a  lesson.  His  theory  was  that,  in  this  way  both  in- 
tuitions and  language  can  be  extended  and  strengthened 
at  the  same  time ;  e.g.,  observation  and  expression  (both 
involved)  will  give :  the  eel  is  slippery,  worm-shaped, 
leather-skinned ;  the  evening  is  peaceful,  cheerful,  cool, 
rainy  ;  the  field  is  sandy,  clayey,  sowed,  manured,  fertile, 
sterile.  Or  we  can  proceed  from  the  adjectives  as  a 
basis  for  calling  up  in  the  mind  such  things  as  give  the 
impressions  associated  with  these  words,  thus:  round 
(given) — bullet,  hat,  moon,  sun  (recollected) ;  light — 
feather,  down,  air;  high — towers,  mountains,  giants, 
trees. 

For  such  exercises  in  language  Pestalozzi  used  both 
objects  and  pictures.  He  says  that  these  ''  pictures  are 
selected  with  a  view  to  present  to  the  child's  mind  all 
the  chief  varieties  of  objects  and  their  properties,  so  far 
as  they  fall  within  the  reach  of  our  five  senses.  As  to 
those  properties  which  become  known  to  us  only  by  the 
intervention  of  judgment  and  imagination,  I  exclude 
them  from  my  plan  of  instruction  at  this  period.  I  am 
aware  that  many  words  denoting  such  properties  will 
necessarily  be  caught  up  by  children  from  the  conversa- 
tion of  others,  which  may  have  the  advantage  of  setting 
their  imagination  to  work  and  awakening  their  curiosity. 
For  the  express  purpose  of  our  instruction,  however,  we 
should    confine    ourselves  to  such  objects   as  are  im- 


202  PESTALOZZI. 

mediately  perceptible  by  our  senses,  with  a  view  to 
bring  the  child  as  early  as  possible  to  a  clear  and  pre- 
cise expression,  in  language,  of  whatever  may  be  the 
result  of  his  observations.  .  .  . 

"A  few  instances  in  each  case  are  sufficient,  and 
the  teacher  may  immediately  proceed  to  the  question  : 
*  What  else  do  you  know  that  is  round,  or  light  ?  '  etc. 
The  children  generally  find  new  examples  within  the 
sphere  of  their  own  experience,  and  very  frequently 
such  as  the  teacher  would  never  have  thought  of;  and 
being  repeatedly  called  upon  to  give  an  account  of  their 
knowledge,  they  acquire  a  facility  and  a  distinctness  of 
expression  which  no  Socratic  conversations,  unless  con- 
ducted with  a  hundred-fold  degree  of  skill  and  labour, 
can  ever  produce  "  {How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

To  get  enlargement  of  ideas  and  enlargement  of 
sentences,  at  the  same  time,  Pestalozzi  would  elicit 
from  the  children  definitions  and  descriptions  of  objects 
and  actions  ;  e.g.,  "  A  hell  is  a  hollow  round  vessel  of  cast 
metal,  open  at  the  bottom,  mostly  with  the  brim  bent 
outwards;  towards  the  top  it  grows  more  and  more 
narrow,  approaching  the  oval  shape  ;  it  is  generally 
suspended  free  in  the  air,  with  an  iron  tongue  hanging 
down  perpendicularly  from  the  centre  of  the  top,  which, 
when  the  bell  is  swung  from  one  side  to  the  other, 
strikes  against  the  brim  of  the  vessel,  and  thus  pro- 
duces the  sound  which  is  called  the  ringing  of  the  bell ; 
To  walk  is  to  move  on,  step  by  step ;  To  stand  is  to  rest 
the  body  on  the  legs,  in  a  perpendicular  position  ;  To 
lie  is  to  rest  the  body  on  the  ground,  on  the  bed,  etc.,  in 
a  horizontal,  or  nearly  horizontal  position,"  etc.  Sen- 
tences were  also  formally  extended,  on  the  basis  of 
real  knowledge  and  through  a  particular  word;  e.g.,  "  I 


SPELLING   AND   READING.  203 

shall ;  I  shall  retain  ;  I  shall  not  retain  my  health  other- 
wise ;  I  shall  not  retain  my  health  after  all  I  have 
suffered  during  my  illness  otherwise  ;  I  shall  not  retain 
my  health,  after  all  I  have  suffered  during  my  illness, 
otherwise  than  by  practising  the  greatest  temperance  ". 
Such  exercises,  he  held,  should  be  instructive  in  them- 
selves :  suitable  to  the  circumstances  of  the  pupils  :  and 
likely  to  arouse  good  feelings  in  the  learner.  They 
should  be  so  ordered  and  arranged  that  they  help  to 
satisfy  the  child's  natural  longing  for,  and  need  of, 
knowledge,  in  the  best  and  most  complete  way. 

It  must  be  remembered,  Pestalozzi  points  out,  that 
the  above  is  a  system  for  assisting  Nature  in  her  own 
work  and  way.  In  actual  order  of  life  the  child  learns 
through  complete  phrases,  which  at  first  only  give  him 
a  glimmer  of  meaning,  but  this  becomes  more  and  more 
clear  as  time  goes  on.  Words  in  a  sentence  help  to 
explain  each  other,  when  the  general  meaning  of  the 
whole  is,  more  or  less,  grasped.  It  is  for  this  reason 
that  sentences  are  far  more  easily  remembered  than 
detached  words,  which,  of  themselves,  have  no  neces- 
sary connection  with  others.  We  learn  things  as 
wholes,  in  the  first  instance,  and  then  analyse  them 
into  parts  so  as  to  get  greater  clearness  and  fulness — 
clear  perceptions  and  distinct  ideas. 

Spelling  and  Reading.  Sooner  or  later  we  must 
begin  to  deal  with  the  forms  by  which  language  is 
symbolised,  and  must  therefore  fix  upon  a  method. 
Pestalozzi  gives  this  account  of  the  way  in  which  he 
arrived  at  his  methods:  "When  I  had  begun  to  teach 
reading,  I  found  out,  after  a  while,  that  my  pupils 
wanted  first  to  be  taught  speaking;  and  when  I  set 
about  trying  how  I  could  accomplish   this,  I   came  at 


204  PESTALOZZI. 

last  to  the  principle  of  following  the  progress  of  nature 
in  the  composition  of  single  sounds  into  words,  and 
words  into  speech.  .  .  .  When  I  attempted  to  teach 
spelling  I  felt  the  want  of  an  appropriate  book  for  the 
earliest  childhood  ;  and  I  conceived  the  plan  of  one  by 
the  aid  of  which  I  have  no  doubt  that  children,  of  three 
or  four  years  of  age,  might  be  brought  to  a  degree  of  real 
information  far  superior  to  that  which  is  commonly 
acquired  at  school  about  the  age  of  seven  or  eight 
years.  .  .  . 

"  It  is  not  to  be  left  to  chance  at  what  time,  and  to 
what  extent,  the  child  shall  become  acquainted  with 
each  sound.  An  early  and  complete  knowledge  of  them 
all  is  of  great  importance.  This  knowledge  he  should 
have  before  he  is  able  to  pronounce  them ;  and  in  like 
manner  he  should  be  able  to  pronounce  them,  generally 
with  ease,  before  he  be  introduced  to  the  knowledge  of 
written  or  printed  characters,  and  taught  to  read. 

"  The  spelling-book  ought,  therefore,  to  contain  all 
the  sounds  of  the  language,  and  these  ought  to  be  taught 
in  every  family  from  the  earliest  infancy.  The  child 
who  learns  his  spelling-book  ought  to  repeat  them  to  the 
infant  in  the  cradle,  before  it  is  able  to  pronounce  even 
one  of  them,  so  that  they  may  be  deeply  impressed 
upon  its  mind  by  frequent  repetition.  It  is  incredible 
to  those  who  have  not  seen  it,  how  much  the  attention 
of  babes  is  excited  by  the  repetition  of  a  few  simple 
sounds,  and  their  combinations,  such  as :  ba,  ba,  ba ; 
da,  da,  da;  ma,  ma,  ma;  la,  la,  la,  and  so  on.  But  the 
charm  which  it  has  for  them  is  not  the  only  advantage, 
for  it  contributes  to  the  development  of  their  faculties, 
and  prepares  them  for  future  greater  exertions.  .   .   ." 

Again  :  "  Mothers  are  invited  to  repeat  those  succes- 


SPELLING.  205 

sions  of  sounds  to  their  children  several  times  a  day, 
even  before  they  are  able  to  speak,  and  to  vary  the 
order  in  w^hich  they  repeat  them,  so  as  to  stimulate  the 
attention,  and,  by  the  contrast  of  the  different  sounds 
with  each  other,  to  produce  a  distinct  knowledge  of  the 
peculiar  character  of  each.  This  repetition  is  to  be 
renewed  with  double  zeal  when  the  children  begin  to 
speak,  that  by  imitating  those  sounds  they  may  the 
more  readily  develop  their  organs "  (Hoio^  Gertrude 
Teaches). 

But  all  this  must  be  based  upon  and  preceded  by 
exercises  in  intuition.  If  this  be  forgotten  the  method 
cannot  be  understood,  and  will  appear  to  be  the  most 
mechanical  of  mechanical  systems.  In  this,  as  in  all 
else,  Pestalozzi  would  have  us  go  from  experiences  to 
ideas,  and  from  ideas  to  words,  even  when  learning 
spelling.  To  this  end  he  says  that  "a  firm  conviction 
gradually  developed  in  me :  (i)  of  the  necessity  of 
picture  books  (intuitive  books)  for  early  childhood  ;  (2) 
of  the  necessity  of  a  fixed  and  precise  exposition  of  these 
books ;  (3)  of  the  necessity  of  a  guide  to  the  names  and 
word-knowledge  based  upon  these  books  and  their  ex- 
positions, with  which  the  children  should  be  made 
familiar,  long  before  the  time  for  beginning  to  spell  " 
{How  Gertrude  Teaches).  Talking  must  come  before 
spelling,  and  the  child  is  to  have  nothing  to  do  with 
words,  in  the  first  instance,  except  in  connection  with 
things.  This  is  very  clearly  shown  in  the  following 
extracts. 

**  You  see  what  objects  God  presents  to  your  child  as 
soon  as  he  opens  his  eyes ;  you  see  the  effect  of  his 
involuntary  and,  so  to  say,  inevitable  intuitions ;  you 
see  what  pleases  and  amuses  him,    Let  all  your  conduct 


2o6  PESTALOZZI. 

be  guided  by  what  you  thus  see ;  take  your  child  near 
the  object  which  catches  his  notice  and  attracts  him 
most  strongly;  show  him  his  favourite  objects  again 
and  again ;  search  everywhere  within  reach — ^in  the 
garden,  the  house,  the  fields — for  those  things  which, 
by  their  colour,  shape,  movement,  or  brilliance,  are 
most  like  to  those  things  he  likes  best.  Surround  his 
table  with  them  and  place  them  on  the  table  vv^here  he 
takes  his  meals.  Give  him  plenty  of  time  in  which 
to  examine  their  qualities,  at  his  ease;  and  let  him 
observe  that  by  putting  fresh  flowers  into  the  vase  where 
others  have  faded,  by  calling  back  the  dog,  or  by  pick- 
ing up  the  fallen  toy,  you  are  often  able  to  replace  what 
often  disappears." 

Again  :  "  I  wish  always  to  let  sense-impressions  come 
before  the  word,  and  definite  knowledge  before  judg- 
ment. I  desire  to  make  the  effect  of  words  and  talk  on 
the  mind  of  little  account,  and  to  secure  that  dominat- 
ing influence  proper  to  the  actual  impressions  of  phy- 
sical objects,  which  forms  such  a  notable  protection 
against  mere  babble  and  empty  talk.  I  wish  to  lead  my 
child,  from  his  earliest  development,  into  the  whole  circle 
of  nature  which  surrounds  him ;  I  would  organise  his 
learning  to  talk  by  a  collection  of  nature's  products.  .  .  . 

''The  next  step  to  betaken  is  to  make  the  child 
pronounce  those  sounds,  as  distinct  exercises,  to  be 
gone  through  several  times  a  day,  but  with  the  same 
ease  and  playfulness  with  which  children  are  generally 
made  to  imitate  sounds ;  the  only  difference  being  that 
the  mother  follows  the  regular  course  traced  for  her  in 
the  spelling-book,  instead  of  taking  the  sounds  at  ran- 
dom as  they  occur  "  (How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

Pestalozzi's  spelling-book  was  built  up  on  the  plan  of 


READING.  207 

combining  (i)  all  the  vowels  with  all  the  consonants,  in 
a  progressive  order,  thus :  ab,  ad,  af,  ag,  etc. ;  then  the 
reverse  order,  ba,  da,  fa,  ga,  etc. ;  so  with  eb,  ed,  etc. 
(2)  Next  more  difficult  syllables  are  formed  by  putting 
a  consonant  both  before  and  after  a  vowel,  thus  :  a,  ap, 
pap,  lap,  etc.  "  Each  syllable  spelt  in  this  manner  is 
to  be  pronounced  by  the  teacher  and  repeated  by  the 
children,  until  it  is  indelibly  impressed  upon  their 
minds.  After  this  the  teacher  asks  for  each  letter 
separately,  and  independently  of  the  order  in  which  they 
stand  (the  first  ?  the  third  ?  etc.),  and,  lastly,  he  covers 
one  syllable  after  the  other  with  his  hand,  and  makes 
the  children  spell  it  from  recollection."  (3)  When  the 
previous  exercises  are  thoroughly  mastered,  the  words 
may  be  learnt,  thus :  f,  fe,  fen,  fende,  fender ;  after- 
wards in  the  reverse  order  :  r,  er,  der,  nder,  ender,  fen- 
der. (4)  "Another  exercise  is  to  divide  the  word  into 
syllables,  which  the  children  are  to  count,  to  spell,  and 
to  pronounce,  first  in  the  order  in  which  they  stand,  and 
then  promiscuously  as  the  teacher  points  them  out.  .  .  . 
"  The  exercises  before  mentioned  being  gone  through 
on  the  spelling-tablet,  or  otherwise,  with  the  paste- 
board letters,  the  book  itself  is  to  be  put  into  the  child's 
hands  as  his  first  reading-book,  and  he  is  to  continue  in 
it  till  he  has  attained  perfect  facility  in  reading  all  the 
exercises."  The  pasteboard  letters  here  referred  to  are 
those  used  in  teaching  the  letters.  "  In  order  to  facili- 
tate the  knowledge  of  the  written  characters,  which 
ought  to  precede  the  exercise  of  spelling,  I  have  ap- 
pended to  the  spelling-book  an  alphabet,  in  which 
the  letters  are  of  considerable  size,  so  as  to  present 
their  differences  to  the  eye  in  a  more  striking  manner. 
These  letters  are  to  be  pasted,  each  separately,  on  stiif 


208  PESTALOZZI. 

paper,  and  given  to  the  child  one  after  another.  The 
vowels  are  in  red  ink,  to  distinguish  them  from  the 
consonants,  and  the  latter  are  not  to  be  taken  in  hand 
until  the  child  be  perfectly  familiar  with  the  former" 
(How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

This  brings  the  pupil  to  fitness  for  learning  the 
formation  of  sentences,  i.e.,  "  the  determination  of  the 
objects,  their  properties  and  different  states,  according 
to  time  and  other  relations  in  which  they  are  placed  ". 
And  this  gives  us  "  the  outline  of  a  practical  grammar, 
by  the  progressive  exercises  of  which  the  child  is 
brought  to  the  ultimate  object  of  instruction,  viz.,  per- 
fect clearness  of  ideas.  The  first  step  of  this  instruction 
is  to  teach  the  child  to  speak  correctly."  The  mother 
is  to  give  a  model  sentence  and  the  child  is  to  repeat  it 
after  her  until  it  is  perfectly  known.  Sentences  such 
as :  "  Papa  is  kind  ;  the  cow  is  tame  ;  the  fir  is  tall," 
etc.,  are  to  be  given,  and  when  the  child,  says  them 
easily  and  correctly,  the  mother  should  then  ask  :  "  Who 
else  is  kind  ?  "  etc.  ''  What  else  is  papa  ?  "  etc.  Fol- 
lowing this  would  be  such  exercises  as :  ''  Who  or 
what,  are  what  ? — Roots  are  tough ;  who  or  what,  has 
what  ? — The  dog  has  a  fine  scent ;  Who  or  what,  have 
what  ? — Plants  have  roots  ;  Who  wishes  what  ? — The 
hungry  wishes  to  eat ;  Who  wish  what  ? — Children  wish 
to  play ;  Who  can  what  ?  (singular) — The  bird  can  fly ; 
Who  can  what  ?  (plural) — Tailors  can  stitch,"  and  so 
on. 

"  In  this  manner  I  continue  these  exercises,  both  in 
the  singular  and  the  plural,  through  the  whole  round  of 
declensions  and  conjugations ;  and,  with  special  refer- 
ence to  the  verb,  I  continue  as  follows.  First  I  form 
the  simple  connection  between  the  verb  and  the  object ; 


READING.  209 

e.g.,  attend  to  the  teacher's  words;  breathe  through  your 
lungs  ;  hind  a  sheaf,  a  stocking,  etc.  The  next  exercise 
adds  a  subject  to  the  verb ;  e.g.,  attend :  I  attend  to  the 
teacher's  words,  to  my  duty,  to  my  welfare  ;  a  person 
who  attends  to  things  is  attentive ;  a  person  who  does 
not  attend  to  anything,  or  only  to  a  few  things,  is  inatten- 
tive ;  I  ought  to  attend  to  myself  more  than  to  anything 
else  "  {How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

Such  exercises  have  two  ends  in  view,  viz.,  (i)  to  cul- 
tivate the  organs  of  speech  (vocalisation,  pronunciation), 
and  the  art  of  speaking  (oral  composition);  and  (2) 
teaching  the  formation  of  sentences  (in  the  above- 
mentioned  sense).  These  two  ends  must  always  be 
kept  perfectly  distinct  and  separate,  and  each  must 
be  perfected  by,  and  in,  itself,  even  though  the  same 
sentences  may  be  used  for  both.  As  is  said  in  the 
Swan's  Song :  "To  teach  a  child  to  talk  we  must  first 
cause  him  to  see,  hear  and  touch  many  things,  and 
especially  those  which  please  him,  and  to  which,  there- 
fore, he  will  readily  attend.  We  must  also  get  him 
to  observe  them  in  an  orderly  way,  observing  each 
thoroughly  before  he  goes  on  to  another.  At  the  same 
time  he  must  be  continuously  learning  how  to  express 
his  impressions  in  words."  Again  :  "  I  connected  the 
art  of  teaching  children  to  talk  with  the  intuitive-ideas 
given  to  them  by  nature  and  by  art "  (How  Gertrude 
Teaches), 

Pestalozzi's  own  way  of  doing  this  is  described  in  his 
account  of  how  he  taught  the  little  boy — "then  hardly 
three  years  of  age  " — at  Burgdorf.  "  I  led  him  to  form, 
concerning  every  object,  distinct  notions,  and  to  express 
these  notions  clearly  in  language.  Very  soon  I  was 
obliged  to  lay  aside  the  alphabet,  that  first  torment  of 

14 


2IO  PESTALOZZI. 

youth.  He  felt  no  interest  in  those  dead  signs :  he 
would  have  nothing  but  things,  or  pictures  of  things : 
and  in  a  short  time  he  was  enabled  to  express  himself 
distinctly  respecting  any  objects  within  the  sphere  of 
his  knowledge.  He  gathered  general  information  from 
the  street,  the  garden,  and  the  house ;  and,  upon  the 
basis  of  clear  and  self-acquired  notions,  he  soon  learned 
to  pronounce  correctly  even  the  most  difficult  names  of 
plants  and  animals.  Nay,  by  comparing  objects  entirely 
unknown  to  him,  with  such  as  he  was  acquainted  with, 
he  was  able  to  form  of  them  a  definite  idea  "  {How 
Gertrude  Teaches). 

In  connection  with  this  experiment  he  arrived  at  the 
profound  principle  that  ''nature  brings  the  children, 
even  at  this  age,  to  a  very  definite  consciousness  of 
numberless  objects.  It  only  needs  that  we  should,  with 
psychological  art,  unite  speech  with  this  knowledge, 
in  order  to  bring  it  to  a  high  degree  of  clearness ;  and 
thereby  enable  us  to  connect  both  the  foundations  of 
many-sided  arts  and  many-sided  truths  to  that  which 
nature  herself  teaches ;  and  likewise  to  make  use  of 
what  nature  teaches  as  a  means  for  the  explanation  of 
all  the  fundamentals  of  art  and  truth  that  one  can  bring 
forward  "  {How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

Also  in  connection  with  the  teaching  of  spelling  and 
number,  at  Burgdorf  during  the  same  period,  he  began 
to  work  out  the  great  corner-stone  idea  for  his  whole 
system,  "The  A  B  C  of  Anschauung".  He  says:  "I 
sought  in  every  way  to  bring  the  beginnings  of  spelling 
and  reckoning  to  the  greatest  simplicity  and  method  ; 
so  that,  by  the  greatest  psychological  art,  the  child 
might  pass  from  the  first  step  gradually  to  the  second  ; 
and   then  without   break,  upon  the  foundation  of  the 


REAL   BASES   OF   LANGUAGE-TEACHING.  211 

fully  grasped  second,  quickly  and  safely  he  will  be 
carried  on  through  the  third  and  fourth.  .  .  .  With  this 
work  the  idea  of  the  possibility  of  an  *  A  B  C  of  An- 
schauung '  gradually  unfolded  itself"  {How  Gertrude 
Teaches), 

It  is  of  the  highest  significance  that  what  is  ordinarily 
regarded  as  the  most  mechanical  and  arbitrary  of  all 
school  subjects,  i.e.,  spelling,  should  be  one  of  the  two 
subjects  which  gave  to  Pestalozzi  the  suggestion  of  the 
unifying  and  fundamental  principle  of  his  whole  scheme 
of  education.  To  realise  the  full  significance  of  this 
fact  is  to  grasp  the  essence  of  his  theories :  to  miss  it 
is  to  misunderstand  and  mistake  his  whole  work.  There 
is  nothing  in  education,  he  would  have  us  understand, 
which  cannot,  and  does  not,  begin  in  a  real  experience 
on  the  part  of  the  child — something  which  must,  and 
does,  happen  in  the  course  of  nature — and  which,  there- 
fore, must  be,  as  it  alone  can  be,  the  starting-point  of 
true  education. 

Much  scornful  criticism  has  been  passed  upon  the 
mechanical  nature  of  the  exercises  in  spelling,  etc.,  in 
the  Mother's  Book :  much  of  it  fully  deserved  in  so  far 
as  Pestalozzi  has  carried  his  method  to  mechanical 
extremes :  but  most  of  it  mistaken  in  that  it  ignores 
Pestalozzi's  underlying  assumption  that  it  is  all  based 
upon  actual  intuitions.  As  he  himself  so  well  says :  "  I 
cannot  prevent  the  forms  of  my  method  from  having 
the  same  fate  as  all  other  forms,  which  inevitably  perish 
in  the  hands  of  men  who  are  neither  desirous  nor  cap- 
able of  grasping  their  spirit  ". 

Such  is  the  work  of  a  mother;  and  Pestalozzi's 
Mother's  Manual  and  Guide  for  Teaching  Spelling  and 
Reading  are  but  skeleton  outlines  to  which  the  mother 

14  * 


212  PESTALOZZI. 

and  the  teacher  mustiimpart  flesh,  blood  and  Hfe,  so  to 
speak.  Every  mother,  he  says,  is  "  able  to  give  her 
child  the  possession  of  a  variety  of  names,  simply  by 
bringing  the  objects  themselves  before  the  child,  pro- 
nouncing the  names,  and  making  the  child  repeat  them. 
She  must  feel  herself  able  to  bring  such  objects  before 
the  child  in  a  sort  of  natural  order,  the  different  parts, 
for  instance,  of  a  fruit.  Let  no  one  despise  these  things 
because  they  are  little.  .  .  .  After  she  has  exhausted 
the  stock  of  objects  which  presented  themselves  first, 
after  the  child  has  acquired  the  names  of  them,  and  is 
able  to  distinguish  their  parts,  it  may  probably  occur 
to  her  that  something  more  might  still  be  said  on  every 
one  of  these  objects. 

"  She  will  find  herself  able  to  describe  them  to  the 
child  with  regard  to  form,  size,  colour,  softness  or  hard- 
ness of  the  outside,  sound  when  touched,  and  so  on. 
She  has  now  gained  a  material  point ;  from  the  mere 
knowledge  of  the  names  of  objects,  she  has  led  the 
infant  to  a  knowledge  of  their  qualities  and  properties. 
Nothing  can  be  more  natural  for  her  than  to  go  on  and 
compare  different  objects  with  regard  to  these  qualities, 
and  the  greater  or  smaller  degree  in  which  they  belong 
to  the  object.  If  the  former  exercises  were  adapted  to 
cultivate  the  memory,  these  are  calculated  to  form  the 
observation  and  judgment. 

"She  may  still  go  much  further:  she  is  able  to  tell 
her  child  the  reasons  of  things,  and  the  causes  of  facts. 
She  is  able  to  inform  him  of  the  origin,  and  the  duration, 
and  the  consequences  of  a  variety  of  objects.  The  oc- 
currences of  every  day,  and  of  every  hour,  will  furnish 
her  with  materials  for  this  sort  of  instruction.  Its  use 
is  evident :    it  teaches  the  child  to  inquire  after  the 


DEVELOPMENT   OF   LANGUAGE-TEACHING.        21 3 

causes,  and  accustoms  it  to  think  of  the  consequences 
of  things  "  {On  Infants'  Education). 

The  above  will  enable  us  to  understand  how  Pestalozzi 
arrives  at  his  development  of  language  teaching  into 
instruction  in  (i)  sounds,  (2)  words,  and  (3)  speech,  as 
mentioned  above ;  and  how  he  goes  on  to  subdivide  the 
third  branch  into  (a)  the  designation  of  the  form  and 
number  of  every  object ;  (b)  the  designation  of  all  the 
other  properties  of  objects,  whether  they  be  discovered 
by  our  senses,  or  by  our  imagination  and  judgment ;  and 
(c)  the  determination  of  the  objects,  their  properties  and 
different  states  according  to  time  and  other  relations  in 
which  they  are  placed,  with  a  view  to  still  further  illus- 
trate all  that  the  child  has  before  learned  concerning 
the  nature,  powers  of  action,  and  so  on,  of  each  object. 
This  leads  to  the  outline  of  a  practical  grammar. 

Under  the  second  of  these  subdivisions  he  includes  a 
very  wide  range  of  knowledge.  He  writes ;  "  I  now 
distinguish  the  treasures  of  language  which  are,  as  it 
were,  the  testimony  of  past  ages  concerning  the  uni- 
verse, under  the  following  heads  :  (i)  geography,  (2) 
history,  (3)  physical  science,  and  (4)  natural  history. 
But  in  order  to  avoid  useless  repetitions  and  to  make 
the  course  as  short  as  possible,  I  subdivide  these  four 
heads  at  once  into  about  forty  sections,  and  present  to 
the  child  the  names  of  different  objects  only  in  these 
subdivisions.  I  then  take  up  the  particular  object  of 
our  observation,  man  himself,  and  arrange  the  whole 
of  what  language  contains  concerning  him  under  the 
following  heads :  (a)  man  as  a  merely  physical  or 
animal  being ;  (b)  man  as  a  social,  and  still  animal, 
being ;  and  (c)  man  as  a  moral  and  intellectual  being, 
raised  above  the  level  of  animal  existence.     These  three 


214  PESTALOZZI. 

heads  I  again  subdivide  into  about  forty  sections,  com- 
prehending all  that  is  to  be  said  about  man"  (How 
Gertrude  Teaches).  But  these  elaborate  subdivisions 
were  afterwards  abandoned  ''  as  the  results  of  immature 
opinions  ". 

In  order  to  bring  about  a  general  system  of  education 
on  these  Hnes  Pestalozzi  was  convinced  ''that  intuitive 
books  for  elementary  instruction  are  indispensable  ". 
Again,  he  writes :  "  I  saw,  moreover,  that  in  the  com- 
position of  such  books  it  must  be  of  the  highest  impor- 
tance to  keep  the  different  parts  of  instruction  distinct 
from  one  another,  and  to  introduce  them  in  a  manner 
adapted  to  the  natural  progress  of  the  child's  mind  ;  for 
it  is  only  by  determining  with  the  greatest  accuracy 
what  is  calculated  for  every  age  and  every  stage  of 
development,  that  we  shall  avoid  either  withholding 
anything  of  which  the  child  is  capable,  or  burdening 
and  confounding  him  with  things  which  he  cannot  yet 
grasp.  ...  I  was  deeply  impressed  with  the  want  of 
'  intuitive  elementary  books,'  by  the  aid  of  which,  long 
before  the  spelling-book  comes  on,  children  might  be 
made  acquainted  with  those  objects  of  which  they  are  to 
learn  the  names,  either  by  their  being  exhibited  to  them 
in  reality,  or  represented  in  good  models  and  drawing." 

Pestalozzi  rightly  laid  the  greatest  possible  emphasis 
upon  the  importance  of  the  beginnings  of  education. 
In  the  light  of  his  experiences  at  Stanz,  he  says : 
"  Never  before  had  I  so  deeply  felt  the  important  bear- 
ing which  the  first  elements  of  every  branch  of  know- 
ledge have  upon  its  complete  outline ;  and  what 
immense  deficiencies  in  the  final  result  of  education 
must  arise  from  the  confusion  and  imperfection  of  the 
simplest  beginnings  "  (How  Gertrude  Teaches), 


DRAWING.  215 

II.  The  Teaching  of  Form. 

Language  teaching,  in  all  its  forms,  Pestalozzi  calls 
the  first  means  of  elementary  instruction  ;  the  teaching 
of  form,  i.e.,  measuring,  drawing  and  writing,  he  calls 
the  second  means  of  instruction.  The  order  in  which 
he  places  the  three  is  what  he  would  call  the  natural 
order.  He  says  :  "In  endeavouring  to  teach  writing  I 
found  that  I  must  begin  by  teaching  my  children  draw- 
ing ;  and,  when  I  took  this  in  hand,  I  saw  that  without 
the  art  of  measuring  there  is  no  drawing  ".  He  con- 
sidered that  measuring  enables  a  person  to  apprehend, 
exactly  and  clearly,  the  outlines  of  objects;  whilst 
drawing  gives  the  power  correctly  to  represent  the  out- 
line of  objects. 

He  finds  that  the  attempt  to  draw  is  one  of  the  earliest 
activities  of  the  child.  Just  as  the  faculty  for  imitation 
leads  the  child  to  language  and  music  through  the  ear, 
so  it  is  led  to  drawing  through  the  eye  and  hand. 
"  Children  who  show  some  curiosity  in  the  objects 
brought  before  their  eyes,  very  soon  begin  to  employ 
their  ingenuity  and  skill  in  copying  what  they  have 
seen.  ...  As  soon  as  they  are  able  to  make  the  at- 
tempt, there  is  nothing  so  well  calculated  for  this  object 
as  some  elementary  practice  in  drawing.  .  .  . 

"The  general  advantages  resulting  from  an  early 
practice  of  drawing  are  evident  to  every  one.  .  .  .  Even 
in  common  life,  a  person  who  is  in  the  habit  of  drawing, 
especially  from  nature,  will  easily  perceive  many  details 
which  are  commonly  overlooked,  and  form  a  much  more 
correct  impression,  even  of  such  objects  as  he  does  not 
stop  to  examine  minutely,  than  one  who  has  never  been 
taught  to  look  upon  what  he  sees  with  an  intention  to 


2  [6  PESTALOZZI. 

reproduce  a  likeness  of  it.  The  attention  to  the  exact 
shape  of  the  whole,  and  the  proportion  of  the  parts, 
which  is  necessary  for  the  taking  of  an  adequate  sketch, 
becomes  a  habit,  and,  in  many  cases,  gives  much  in- 
struction and  amusement  "  {On  Infants  Education). 

The  following  passages  give  an  outline  of  his  ideas 
on,  and  method  in,  measuring  and  drawing.  *'  It  is 
obvious,  but  altogether  overlooked  in  general,  that 
practical  facility  in  measuring  things  ought  to  precede 
every  attempt  at  drawing ;  or,  at  least,  that  we  can  draw 
successfully  only  so  far  as  we  are  capable  of  measuring. 
The  common  mode  of  proceeding,  on  the  contrary,  is  to 
begin  with  an  incorrect  view  and  a  crooked  representa- 
tion of  the  object ;  to  expunge  and  draw  again,  and  to 
repeat  this  tedious  process  until  by  degrees  an  instinc- 
tive sort  of  feeling  of  the  proportions  is  awakened.  Then, 
at  length,  we  proceed  to  what  we  ought  to  begin  with, 
viz.,  measuring." 

He  says  that  this  blind  blundering  into  accuracy  is 
due  to  the  fact  that  artists  have  thus  groped  in  the  dark 
till  they  have  acquired,  *'  by  immense  exertion  and  great 
perseverance,"  the  trick  of  it.  They  are  unable  to  ex- 
plain their  method  to  their  pupils,  and  so  "  art  has  re- 
mained exclusively  in  the  hands  of  a  few  privileged 
individuals,  who  had  talent  and  leisure  sufficient  to 
pursue  that  circuitous  road.  And  yet  the  art  of  drawing 
ought  to  be  a  universal  acquirement,  for  the  simple 
reason  that  the  faculty  is  universally  inherent  in  the 
constitution  of  the  human  mind.  .  .  .  For  let  it  be 
remembered  that  a  taste  for  measuring  and  drawing  is 
continuously  manifesting  itself  in  the  child,  without 
any  assistance  of  art,  by  a  spontaneous  impulse  of 
nature.  .  .  . 


DRAWING.  217 

"  In  proposing,  however,  the  art  of  drawing  as  a 
general  branch  of  education,  it  is  not  to  be  forgotten 
that  I  consider  it  as  a  means  of  leading  the  child  from 
vague  perceptions  to  clear  ideas.  To  answer  this  pur- 
pose it  must  not  be  separated  from  the  art  of  measuring. 
If  the  child  be  made  to  imitate  objects,  or  images  of 
objects,  before  he  has  acquired  a  distinct  view  of  their 
proportions,  his  instruction  in  the  art  of  drawing  will  fail 
to  produce  upon  his  mental  development  that  beneficial 
influence  which  alone  renders  it  worth  learning." 

It  is  significant  to  find  that  Pestalozzi  is  in  agreement 
with  Ruskin  as  to  the  connection  between  drawing  and 
measuring.  Criticising  the  teaching  of  drawing  in 
schools,  Ruskin  says  :  "  The  first  error  in  that  system 
is  the  forbidding  accuracy  of  measurement,  and  enforc- 
ing the  practice  of  guessing  the  size  of  objects.  .  .  . 
The  student  finishes  his  inaccurate  drawing  to  the  end, 
and  his  mind  is  thus,  during  the  whole  process  of  his 
work,  accustomed  to  falseness  of  every  contour.  Such 
a  practice  is  not  to  be  characterised  as  merely  harmful, 
it  is  ruinous  "  (Laws  of  F hole,  preface). 

To  get  the  progress  from  vague  perceptions  to  clear 
ideas  Pestalozzi  insists  upon  the  use  of  sense-im- 
pressions. The  child  must  draw  from  nature,  since 
''the  impression  which  the  object  itself  gives,  is  so 
much  more  striking  than  its  appearance  in  an  imitation. 
It  gives  the  child  much  more  pleasure  to  be  able  to 
exercise  his  skill  in  attempting  a  likeness  of  what  sur- 
rounds him,  and  of  what  he  is  interested  in,  than  in 
labouring  at  a  copy  of  what  is  but  a  copy  itself,  and  has 
less  of  life  or  interest  in  its  appearance  "  {On  Infants' 
Education). 

Unfortunately,  however,  Pestalozzi  worked  out  a  very 


2l8  PESTALOZZI. 

detailed  course  of  preparatory  exercises.  He  said  that 
it  was  unreasonable  to  expect  that  children  should  begin 
drawing  an  object  before  they  had  learned  the  simple 
elements  of  the  laws  of  form,  and  the  art  of  measuring. 
The  child  was  to  learn  the  different  sorts  of  lines  and 
angles,  and  the  divisions  of  the  square  and  circle.  This 
was  to  be  carried  on  in  close  connection  with  drawing, 
i.e.y  so  soon  as  the  child  is  able  to  distinguish,  and  to 
draw,  horizontal,  perpendicular  and  slanting  lines,  he  is 
to  draw  some  object  which  is  "  bounded  chiefly  by  these 
lines  ".  The  purpose  of  such  preparatory  exercises  is 
to  teach  the  learner  to  judge  accurately  as  to  propor- 
tions of  length,  breadth  and  size  of  the  parts  of  an 
object ;  and  to  observe  accurately  the  kinds  of  lines  and 
angles  which  make  up  its  form :  "  Children  must  be 
taught  to  read  outlines  like  words,  and  to  name  the 
separate  parts  of  curves  and  angles  with  letters,  so  that 
their  combination  can  be  as  clearly  expressed  upon 
paper  as  any  word  by  the  joining  of  letters "  {How 
Gertrude  Teaches). 

All  this  was  unfortunate  in  that  the  mechanism  of 
the  training  became  much  too  elaborate,  and  therefore 
hindered  and  obstructed  the  higher  development.  So 
far  did  it  carry  Pestalozzi  and  his  assistants  that  an 
A  Iphabet  of  Form  was  invented  by  Buss.  This,  said  Pes- 
talozzi, "  furnishes  him  [the  pupil]  with  terms  by  means 
of  which  he  may  clearly  describe  .  .  .  comparing  not 
only  the  different  dimensions  of  every  object  that  oc- 
curs to  him,  with  each  other,  but  also  the  whole  outline 
with  the  square,  the  circle,  or  their  essential  divisions 
and  modifications". 

The  figure  given  below  shows  the  divisions  of  the 
circle   and  the    square,   which    give    the    alphabet  of 


WRITING.  219 

forms.  But  the  alphabet  was  never  published,  because 
fuller  investigation  and  experiment  led  to  modified 
views.  Several  courses  of  drawing  were  issued  from 
Pestalozzi's  institute,  of  which  the  best— Dr.  Biber  says 
— is  that  by  Ramsauer. 


Writing,  which  has  to  follow  drawing,  is  to  be  taught 
in  two  stages:  "The  first  when  the  child  is  to  learn 
the  formation  and  combination  of  letters  with  the  [slate] 
pencil  merely  ;  and  the  second  when  he  is  to  practise 
his  hand  in  the  use  of  the  pen.  In  the  first  course  of 
writing  the  letters  are  to  be  laid  before  the  child  ac- 
cording to  the  precise  measure  of  their  proportions  ; 
and  I  have  got  a  set  of  copies  engraved,  which,  follow- 
ing the  successive  steps  of  my  method,  will  almost  of 
itself  form  a  sufficient  guide  for  the  child  in  the  practice 
of  writing.     It  has  the  following  advantages  : — 

"  (i)  The  child  is  kept  a  sufficient  time  at  the  draw- 
ing of  the  elementary  or  fundamental  lines  of  which  the 
different  letters  are  composed.  (2)  These  elementary 
lines  are  put  together  according  to  a  gradual  progress, 


220  PESTALOZZI. 

in  which  the  most  difficult  letters  are  placed  at  the 
end,  and  their  formation  is  moreover  facilitated  by  the 
previous  practice  of  lessdifBcult  combinations,  to  which 
even  the  most  complicated  characters  contain  only 
slight  additions.  (3)  The  exercise  of  combining  differ- 
ent letters  with  each  other  is  introduced  from  the  very 
moment  when  the  child  is  able  to  draw  one  correctly, 
and  is  calculated  upon  the  progress  in  the  formation  of 
single  letters,  so  as  never  to  include  any  but  those 
which  have  become  individually  easy  and  familiar.  (4) 
The  book  admits  of  being  cut  up  in  single  lines,  so  that 
the  child  may  place  the  copy  immediately  over  the  line 
in  which  he  intends  writing. 

"  In  this  manner  the  child  learns  to  write  with  ease 
and  perfection  in  the  first  course,  and  all  that  remains 
to  be  done  in  the  second  is  to  teach  him  the  use  of  the 
pen.  This  is  to  be  done  by  the  same  gradual  process 
which  was  followed  on  the  slate ;  the  letters  are  to  be 
drawn  with  the  pen  on  the  same  enlarged  scale  which 
was  adopted  for  the  first  attempt  with  the  pencil,  and 
to  be  diminished,  gradually,  to  the  usual  size  "  {How 
Gertrude  Teaches). 

Pestalozzi  gives  us  the  reasons  why  writing  should  be 
taught  after  measuring  and  drawing :  (i)  writing  itself 
is  a  sort  of  linear  drawing,  and  that  of  stated  forms, 
from  which  no  arbitrary  or  fanciful  deviation  is  per- 
mitted ;  (2)  the  practice  of  writing,  when  acquired 
previously  to,  and  independently  of,  drawing,  spoils  the 
hand  and  mars  its  freedom,  by  confining  it  to  a  few 
peculiar  forms  on  a  contracted  scale,  instead  of  culti- 
vating in  it  a  general  ability  for  all  forms ;  (3)  by  the 
previous  acquirement  of  drawing  the  formation  of  the 
letters  is  greatly  facilitated,  and  all  that  time  is  saved 


WRITING.  221 

which  children  generally  spend  in  correcting  bad  habits, 
contracted  by  a  long  practice  of  bad  writing,  and  sub- 
stituting a  good  hand  for  the  mis-shaped  and  incorrect 
characters  to  which  they  have  been  for  years  ac- 
customed ;  (4)  the  child  should  learn  to  do  everything 
in  perfection  from  its  beginning,  which  he  will  not  be 
able  to  do  in  writing  unless  this  acquirement  be  built 
upon  an  elementary  course  of  drawing. 

An  aid  used  by  Pestalozzi,  in  teaching  writing,  is 
described  by  M,  Fischer :  "  He  gives  out  thin  leaves  of 
transparent  horn  to  each  of  his  scholars.  Upon  these 
tablets  are  engraved  strokes  and  letters,  and  these 
serve  as  models  for  the  beginners,  and  the  more  easily 
so  since  the  pupils  can  themselves  lay  them  upon  the 
figures  they  have  drawn  ;  and,  on  account  of  their  trans- 
parency, can  compare  their  correspondence  with  each 
other." 

While  he  thus  shows  very  clear  method  and  very 
considerable  ingenuity  in  teaching  the  mere  mechanics 
of  writing,  Pestalozzi  does  not  omit  to  show  how  writ- 
ing is  related  to  other  subjects  through  its  subject 
matter.  Considered  as  form,  he  says,  it  is  connected 
with  measuring  and  drawing ;  but  it  is  also  a  kind  of 
learning  to  talk :  a  peculiar  and  special  exercise  of  this 
art.  Hence,  so  soon  as  the  child  has  learnt  to  make 
the  letters  and  their  combinations,  "  he  needs  no  more 
special  copies  for  his  improvement  in  writing.  He  has 
the  substance  for  these  copies  in  his  head,  through  his 
skill  in  speech  and  orthography,  and  he  builds  up  from 
his  own  practical  knowledge,  on  the  lines  of  the  spelling 
and  reading  books,  a  collection  of  words  through  which 
he  constantly  improves  his  speech-skill,  and  exercises 
his  memory  and  imagination  "  (How  Gertrude  Teaches). 


222  PESTALOZZI. 

In  other  words,  writing  includes  composition.  We 
learn  to  write  so  that  we  may  have  another  means  of 
expressing  our  thoughts.  Learning  to  make  letters  is 
not  writing,  but  only  getting  possession  of  the  means 
for  writing.  The  art  will  ''  enable  the  children  ...  to 
express  themselves  clearly  about  every  possible  thing, 
whose  form  and  substance  may  be  made  known  to 
them,  whether  by  word  of  mouth  or  by  writing  ;  and 
firmly  impress  the  knowledge  of  it.  .  .  .  Writing  is  [to 
be]  perfected  not  only  as  an  art,  but  also  as  a  profes- 
sion "  [e.g.,  the  work  of  a  literary  man]. 

It  is  worth  while  to  notice  how  modern  views  on  the 
teaching  of  writing  are  returning  to  the  Pestalozzian 
standpoint :  writing  being  taught  through  drawing,  and 
in  connection  with  composition.  In  one  point  Pesta- 
lozzi  was  much  in  advance  of  the  present  method  of 
teaching  penmanship,  in  that  he  taught  the  combination 
of  the  letters  already  learned  into  syllables  and  words, 
before  mastering  the  writing  of  all  the  letters  in  the 
alphabet. 

III.   Number  Teaching. 

In  dealing  with  this  subject  Pestalozzi  is  at  the  very 
opposite  pole  to  that  which  marks  what  is  usually 
understood  by  the  teaching  of  arithmetic.  He  did  not 
set  out  to  teach  his  pupils  how  to  do  sums,  but  how  to 
understand  numbers.  On  his  plan  the  learner  was 
able  to  do  sums,  easily  and  accurately,  because  he 
understood  numbers ;  on  the  other  plan  children  learn 
to  do  sums  but  may  never  understand  numbers.  His 
pupils  were  able  to  discover  the  ordinary  rules  of  arith- 
metic from  their  study  of  the  principles  of  numbers ; 
pupils  under  the  other  system  learnt  the  rules  by  rote 


NUMBER   TEACHING.  223 

and  worked  the  sums  unintelligently.  As  a  matter  of 
fact  his  pupils  were  the  most  acute  and  rapid  of  practi- 
cal arithmeticians,  amazing  every  one  by  their  speed 
and  accuracy.  He  made  no  use  whatever  of  figures 
until  his  scholars  knew  the  numbers  themselves  per- 
fectly, up  to  ten ;  and  he  taught  no  tables  of  weights 
and  measures,  nor  what  may  be  called  business  arith- 
methic,  until  the  pupil  had  mastered  the  theory  and  art 
of  numbers,  and  then  only  such  tables  and  calculations 
as  the  scholar  was  likely  to  want  in  his  future  calling. 

Number  knowledge  must,  like  all  other  knowledge, 
start  from,  and  develop  through,  sense-impressions. 
Here  is  Pestalozzi's  own  theory  of  number :  "This 
science  arises  altogether  out  of  the  simple  composition 
and  separation  of  units.  Its  fundamental  formula  is 
this :  '  one  and  one  are  two ' ;  '  one  from  two  leaves 
one '.  Any  number,  whatever  be  its  name,  is  nothing 
else  but  an  abridgment  of  this  elementary  process  of 
counting.  Now  itis  a  matter  of  great  importance,  that 
this  ultimate  bases  of  all  number  should  not  be  ob- 
scured in  the  mind  by  arithmetical  symbols.  The 
science  of  numbers  must  be  taught  so  that  their  primi- 
tive constitution  is  deeply  impressed  on  the  mind,  and 
so  as  to  give  an  intuitive  knowledge  of  their  real 
properties  and  proportions,  on  which,  as  the  ground- 
work of  all  arithmetic,  all  further  proficiency  is  to  be 
founded.  If  that  be  neglected,  this  first  means  of  ac- 
quiring clear  notions  will  be  degraded  into  a  plaything 
of  the  child's  memory  and  imagination,  and  its  object, 
of  course,  entirely  defeated. 

"It  cannot  be  otherwise.  If,  for  instance,  we  learn 
merely  by  rote  'three  and  four  make  seven,'  and  then 
we  build  upon  this  '  seven,'  as  if  we  actually  knew  that 


224  PESTALOZZI. 

three  and  four  make  seven,  we  deceive  ourselves ;  we 
have  not  a  real  apprehension  of  seven,  because  we  are 
not  conscious  of  the  physical  fact,  the  actual  sight  of 
which  can  alone  give  truth  and  reality  to  the  hollow 
sound.  .  .  . 

"The  first  impressions  of  numerical  proportions 
should  be  given  to  the  child  by  exhibiting  the  variations 
of  more  and  less,  in  real  objects  placed  before  his  view 
...  in  which  the  ideas  of  one,  two,  three,  etc.,  up  to 
ten,  are  distinctly  and  intuitively  presented  to  his  eyes. 
I  then  call  upon  him  to  pick  out  in  those  tables  the  ob- 
jects which  occur  in  the  number  one,  then  those  which 
are  double,  triple,  etc.  After  this  I  make  him  go  over 
the  same  numbers  again  on  his  fingers,  or  with  beans, 
pebbles,  or  any  other  objects  which  are  at  hand.  .  .  . 

"  In  this  manner  children  are  made  perfectly  familiar 
with  the  elements  of  number :  the  intuitive  knowledge 
of  them  remains  present  to  their  minds  while  learning 
the  use  of  their  symbols,  the  figures,  in  which  they 
must  not  be  exercised  before  that  point  be  fully  secured. 
The  most  important  advantage  gained  by  this  proceed- 
ing is  that  arithmetic  is  made  a  foundation  of  clear 
ideas ;  but,  independently  of  this,  it  is  almost  incredible 
how  great  a  facility  in  the  art  of  calculating  the  child 
derives  from  intuitive  knowledge.  .  .  . 

"  A  square  [tablet]  is  put  up,  and  the  teacher  asks  : 
*  Are  there  many  squares  here  ?  '  Answer :  '  No,  there 
is  but  one '.  The  teacher  adds  one,  and  asks  again  : 
'  One  and  one  ;  how  many  are  they  ?  '  Answer  :  *  One 
and  one  are  two ' ;  and  so  on,  adding  at  first  by  ones, 
afterwards  by  twos,  threes,  etc. 

"  After  the  child  has  in  this  manner  come  to  a  full 
understanding  of  the  composition  of  units  up  to  ten. 


NUMBER   TEACHING.  22$ 

and  has  learned  to  express  himself  with  perfect  ease, 
the  squares  are  again  [used]  in  the  same  manner,  but 
the  question  is  changed  :  '  If  there  are  two  squares, 
how  many  times  have  we  one  square  ?  '  The  child 
looks,  counts,  and  answers  correctly  :  '  If  there  are  two 
squares,  we  have  two  times  one  square '. 

"The  child  having  thus  distinctly  and  repeatedly 
counted  over  the  parts  of  each  number  up  to  ten,  and 
come  to  a  clear  view  of  the  number  of  units  contained 
in  each,  the  question  is  changed  again,  the  squares 
being  still  put  up  as  before.  '  Two  :  how  many  times 
one  is  it  ?  Three  :  how  many  times  one  ?  '  etc. ;  and 
again  :  '  How  many  times  is  one  contained  in  two, 
three  ?  '  etc.  After  the  child  has  in  this  manner  been 
introduced  to  the  simple  elements  of  addition,  multipli- 
cation and  division,  and  become  conversant  with  their 
nature  by  the  repeated  representation  of  the  relations 
which  they  express,  in  visible  objects,  subtraction  is  to 
be  exercised  upon  the  same  plan,  as  follows :  the  ten 
squares  being  put  up  together,  the  teacher  takes  away 
one  of  them,  and  asks  :  '  If  I  take  one  from  ten,  how 
many  remains  ? '  The  child  counts,  finds  nine,  and 
answers :  '  If  you  take  one  from  ten,  there  remains 
nine  '.  The  teacher  then  takes  away  a  second  square, 
and  asks:  *  One  less  than  nine:  how  many?'  The 
child  counts  again,  finds  eight,  and  answers  :  '  One 
less  than  nine  are  eight ' ;  and  so  on  to  the  end. 

"  This  exemplification  of  arithmetic  is  to  be  continued 
in  successive  exercises,  and  in  the  manner  before  de- 
scribed.    For  example : — 

1       111111  etc. 

1       111      111     111  etc. 
1       1111  etc. 
15 


226  PESTALOZZI. 

'*  As  soon  as  the  addition  of  one  series  is  gone  through, 
the  subtraction  is  to  be  made  at  the  same  rate,  thus : 
having  counted  together  one  and  two  make  three,  and 
two  make  five,  and  two  make  seven,  and  so  on  up  to 
twenty-one  squares,  the  subtraction  is  made  by  taking 
away  two  squares  at  a  time,  and  asking :  *  Two  from 
twenty-one  :  how  many  are  there  left  ?  '  and  so  on. 

"■  The  child  has  thus  learned  to  ascertain  the  increase 
and  diminution  of  number,  when  represented  in  real  and 
movable  objects;  the  next  step  is  to  place  the  same 
successions  before  him  in  arithmetical  tables,  on  which 
the  numbers  are  represented  by  strokes  or  dots." 

Such  a  training  in  real  number  will,  Pestalozzi  as- 
serts, enable  the  child  "  to  enter  with  the  utmost  facility 
upon  the  common  abridged  modes  of  calculating  by 
figures.  His  mind  is  above  confusion  and  trifling 
guesswork;  his  arithmetic  is  a  rational  process,  not 
mere  memory  work,  or  mechanical  routine ;  it  is  the 
result  of  a  distinct  and  intuitive  apprehension  of 
number,  and  the  source  of  perfectly  clear  ideas  in  the 
further  pursuit  of  that  science."  As  he  says  in  another 
place,  his  method  "  was  to  develop  the  internal  power 
of  the  child  rather  than  to  produce  those  results  which, 
nevertheless,  were  produced  as  the  necessary  conse- 
quences of  my  proceedings.  .  .  .  The  effect  of  my 
method  was  to  lay  in  the  child  a  foundation  of  know- 
ledge and  further  progress,  such  as  it  would  be  im- 
possible to  obtain  by  any  other.  .  .  . 

"  The  increase  and  diminution  of  things  is  not  confined 
to  the  number  of  units  ;  it  includes  the  division  of  units 
into  parts.  This  forms  a  new  species  of  arithmetic,  in 
which  we  find  every  unit  capable  of  division  and  sub- 
division into  an  indefinite  number  of  parts. 


NUMBER   TEACHING.  22/ 

"  In  the  course  before  described,  a  stroke  representing 
the  unit  was  made  the  intuitive  basis  of  instruction ; 
and  it  is  now  necessary,  for  the  new  species  of  calcula- 
tion just  mentioned,  to  find  a  figure  which  shall  be 
divisible  to  an  indefinite  extent  and  yet  preserve  its 
character  in  all  its  parts,  so  that  every  one  of  them  may 
be  considered  as  an  independent  unit,  analogous  to  the 
whole ;  and  that  the  child  may  have  its  fractional  re- 
lation to  the  whole  as  clearly  before  his  eyes  as  the 
relation  of  three  to  one,  by  three  distinct  strokes. 

"The  only  figure  adapted  to  this  purpose  is  the 
square.  By  means  of  it  the  diminution  of  each  single 
part,  and  the  proportionate  increase  of  the  number  of 
parts  by  the  continued  division  and  subdivision  of  the 
unit  may  be  made  as  intuitively  evident  as  the  ascend- 
ing scale  of  numbers  by  the  addition  or  multiplication 
of  units.  A  fraction  table  has  been  drawn  up  [to  show 
this].  .  .  . 

"  Now  as  the  alphabet  of  forms  is  chiefly  founded 
upon  the  division  of  the  square  into  its  parts,  and  the 
fractional  tables  serve  to  illustrate  the  same  division  in 
a  variety  of  manners,  the  alphabet  of  forms,  and  that 
of  fractions,  prove  in  the  end  the  same ;  and  the  child 
is  thus  naturally  led  to  connect  in  his  mind  the  elements 
of  form  with  those  of  number,  both  explaining  and 
supporting  each  other.  My  method  of  arithmetic  is 
therefore  essentially  founded  upon  the  alphabet  of  forms, 
which  was  originally  intended  only  for  the  purposes  of 
measuring  and  drawing. 

*'  By  means  of  these  fractional  squares,  the  child 
acquires  such  an  intuitive  knowledge  of  the  real  pro- 
portions of  the  different  fractions,  that  it  is  a  very  easy 
task,  afterwards,  to  introduce  him  to  the  usq  qf  figures 

15* 


228 


PESTALOZZI. 


for  fractional  calculation.  Experience  has  proved,  that 
by  my  method  they  arrive  at  this  part  of  arithmetic 
from  three  to  four  years  earlier  than  by  the  usual  mode 
of  proceeding.  And  it  may  be  said  of  this,  as  of  the 
former  course,  that  it  sets  the  child  above  confusion  and 
trifling  guesswork ;  his  knov^ledge  of  fractions  being 
founded  upon  intuitive  and  clear  ideas,  which  give  him 
both  a  desire  for  truth  and  the  power  of  discovering  and 
realising  it  in  his  mind." 

Throughout  the  teaching  of  number,  Pestalozzi's  aim 
is  to  develop  distinct  ideas  through  grouping  (addition 
and  multiplication),  separating  (subtraction  and  division), 
and  comparing  (ideas  of  more  and  less)  the  objects — as 
to  their  quantitative  (number)  elements — of  perception. 
When  the  ideas  of  the  learner  have  been  perfected 
through  number-teaching,  then  the  learning  of  the  or- 
dinary arithmetical  rules  is  but  the  application  of  his 
trained  ideas  to  the  practical  affairs  of  life ;  and  it  will 
be  found  that  he  is  able  to  understand  the  problems  and 
discover  the  rules,  in  most  cases,  for  himself. 

Pestalozzi  had  three  arithmetical  tables  which  he 
used  in  teaching  number.  We  give  sections  of  these 
to  show  what  they  were. 


I.  Table  of 
Simple  Unity. 


II.  Table  of  Simple 
Fractions. 


III.  Table  of  Com- 
pound Fractions. 


I 

I 

I 

n 

n 

n 

in 

lil 

HI 

□□' 


mcamm 


oamQii  QUffla 


m 


a 


NUMBER   TEACHING.  229 

In  the  Table  of  Simple  Unity  there  were  ten  of  each 
number  on  a  line  ;  so  that  on  the  last  line  there  were 
ten  tens.     The   other   numbers  were  put   thus:  IIII, 

mil,  mill,  iiiiiii,  iiiiiiii,  iiiiiiiii,iiiiiiiiii. 

The  Table  of  Simple  Fractions  had  ten  squares  in  each 
line,  and  ten  lines ;  the  last  line  being  ten  squares 
divided  into  tenths.  The  Table  of  Compound  Fractions 
also  had  ten  lines  and  ten  squares  in  each.  In  the 
first  line  the  unit  was  divided  in  halves,  thirds,  etc.,  to 
tenths ;  in  the  second  line  halves  were  divided  into 
their  halves,  thirds,  etc,  to  tenths ;  and  in  the  last  line 
tenths  were  similarly  divided. 

In  teaching  units  Pestalozzi  did  not  confine  himself  to 
the  Table  of  Units,  i.e.,  to  visual  sense-impressions.  He 
says  that,  when  the  pupils  were  familiar  with  this,  he 
"let  them  find  the  same  relations  on  their  fingers,  or 
with  peas,  stones,  or  other  handy  objects  "  {How  Ger- 
trude Teaches).  After  the  four  simple  rules  had  been 
mastered  the  learner  was  taken  to  fractions  ;  and  not 
until  these  were  known  was  he  allowed  to  apply  his, 
now  complete,  number  knowledge  to  practical  arith- 
metic, i.e.,  sums  concerning  money,  weights,  measures, 
etc. 

Very  full  and  detailed  exercises  were  given  for  all  the 
numbers  up  to  100;  and  for  all  the  small  fractions. 
These  exercises  had  to  be  thoroughly  mastered  and 
known,  before  what  we  now  call  concrete  sums  were 
worked.  Although  the  pupils  were  dealing  with  some 
kinds  of  objects — diagrams,  pictures  and  things — all 
the  time,  yet  the  formal  and  mechanical  elements  were 
largely  present,  and  must  have  taken  up  much  of  the 
time  and  energy  of  the  teachers  and  learners. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

PESTALOZZrS  METHODS  OF  TEACHING  VARIOUS 
OTHER  SUBJECTS. 

Geography.  In  the  Swan's  Song  Pestalozzi  says  that 
the  accurate  observation  of  the  different  conditions  of 
water,  at  rest  or  in  motion :  its  changing  into  dew, 
rain,  vapour,  steam,  hoar-frost,  hail,  etc. :  and  its  ac- 
tion on  other  objects  of  nature  ;  and  the  expressing  of 
the  results  of  such  observations  in  clear  and  fitting 
language,  give  the  beginnings  of  physical  geography. 
The  pupil  must  first  be  taught  to  observe  the  country 
around  his  own  home  ;  not  studying  it  through  a  map, 
but  by  actually  walking  about  the  land  itself.  He 
must  learn  to  make  a  map — correcting  any  mistakes  in 
his  first  attempts  from  fuller  and  more  accurate  know- 
ledge gained  from  later  visits — before  he  is  allowed  to 
see,  much  less  to  make  use  of,  a  school  map.  The 
maps  used  in  school  teaching  should  be  blank  m.aps. 

One  of  the  Yverdon  pupils.  Professor  Vulliemin,  thus 
describes  the  actual  teaching  in  geography :  "  The  first 
elements  of  geography  were  taught  us  from  the  land 
itself.  We  were  taken  to  a  narrow  valley  not  far  from 
Yverdon,  where  the  river  Buroa  runs.  After  taking  a 
general  view  of  the  valley,  we  were  made  to  examine 
the  details,  until  we  had  obtained  an  exact  and  com- 
plete idea  of  it.     We  were  then  told  to  take  some  clay, 

230 


GEOGRAPHY.  23 1 

which  lay  in  beds  on  one  side  of  the  valley,  and  fill  the 
baskets  which  we  had  brought  for  the  purpose. 

*'  On  our  return  to  the  castle,  we  took  our  places  at 
the  long  table,  and  reproduced  in  relief  the  valley  we 
had  just  studied,  each  one  doing  the  part  which  had 
been  allotted  to  him.  In  the  course  of  the  next  few 
days  more  walks  and  more  explorations,  each  day  on 
higher  ground,  and  each  time  with  a  further  extension 
of  our  work.  Only  when  our  relief  was  finished  were 
we  shown  the  map,  which  by  this  means  we  did  not 
see  till  we  were  in  a  condition  to  understand  it." 

From  the  very  beginnings  geography  is  to  be  cor- 
related with  the  other  sciences,  such  as  natural  history, 
agriculture,  geology,  etc. ;  not  only  because  these  are 
directly  connected  with  each  other,  but  also  because 
greater  and  continuous  interest  is  thus  aroused. 

Dr.  Biber,  after  describing,  in  glowing  terms,  the 
pre-eminent  advantages  of  the  surroundings  at  Yverdon, 
for  teaching  geography  to  the  pupils  there,  says:  "  He 
taught  them  to  watch  the  gathering  up  of  the  morning 
mists,  and  the  shadows  of  the  early  clouds,  which 
passing  over  the  glittering  lake  hid  for  a  moment,  as 
with  a  veil  of  gauze,  its  streams  of  undulating  gold  ;  he 
directed  their  eyes  to  the  flaming  characters  with  which 
the  sun  writes  the  farewell  of  day  on  the  traceless 
surface  of  eternal  snow ;  he  stood  listening  with  them 
to  the  majestic  voice  of  nature,  when  the  autumnal  gale 
howling  on  the  floods,  rolled  billow  after  billow  to  the 
bleak  shore;  he  guided  their  steps  to  the  mountain 
caves  from  whose  deep  recesses  the  stately  rivers  drew 
their  inexhaustible  supplies. 

"  Wherever  he  found  a  leaf  in  the  mysterious  book 
of  creation  laid  open,  he  gave  it  to  them  to  read,  and 


232  PESTALOZZI. 

thus,  within  the  narrow  sphere  of  their  horizon,  taught 
them  more  of  earth  and  earthborn  beings,  than  they 
could  have  learned  by  travelling,  in  the  pages  of  a  heavy 
volume,  all  round  the  globe.  This  was  indeed  '  intui- 
tive '  teaching,  and  experience  proved  that,  independ- 
ently of  the  moral  effect  which  such  an  intercourse 
with  nature  can  never  fail  to  produce,  the  reality  and 
vivacity  of  the  ideas  awakened  in  the  children,  concern- 
ing the  relations  of  the  great  elements  to  each  other, 
and  to  the  beings  whose  existence  they  support,  en- 
sured a  permanent  and  lively  attention  to  whatever 
ulterior  instruction  in  the  science  of  geography  it  was 
deemed  expedient  to  impart.  .  .  . 

"The  simple  features  by  which  the  hand  of  nature 
has  distinguished  the  different  countries,  were  presented 
to  the  mind  long  before  the  artificial  mould  into  which 
man  has  cast  them.  Physical  and  mathematical  geo- 
graphy, founded  upon  the  ideas  acquired  by  self-ob- 
servation, formed  the  ground-work  of  this  branch  of  the 
method,  and  statistical  facts  were  superadded  at  the 
end,  arranged  in  concise  tables  so  as  to  facilitate  their 
recollection." 

History.  Pestalozzi  held  that  it  was  unwise  to  at- 
tempt to  teach  historical  incidents,  and  their  causes 
and  effects,  to  young  children.  Not  only  are  children 
unable  and  unfitted  to  judge  of  the  doings  and  motives 
of  men  and  nations,  but  their  moral  and  intellectual 
progress  is  hindered  and  hampered  by  attempts  to  do 
this,  and  by  so  early  an  acquaintance  with  the  wicked- 
ness and  violence  they  have  to  learn  about  in  the  study 
of  history. 

Dr.  Biber  says:  "The  historical  lessons  laboured 
under   still   greater  imperfections.     Pestalozzi,  from  a 


ELEMENTARY  SCIENCE.  233 

sort  of  prejudice  which  he  had  conceived  against  his- 
torical studies,  gave  but  little  encouragement  to  their 
cultivation  in  the  establishment,  and  accordingly  their 
treatment  by  the  different  teachers  was,  more  than  that 
of  any  other  branch  of  instruction,  subject  to  endless 
changes.  One  man  read  abstruse  lectures ;  another  drew 
up  a  set  of  synchronistical  tables  ;  to  some  it  seemed  pre- 
ferable to  connect  all  history  with  biographical  sketches, 
while  others  indulged  in  lengthy  discussions  on  the 
different  forms  of  government,  and  the  best  polity ; 
some  hurried  over  the  whole  of  the  records  of  human- 
kind in  a  few  months ;  while  others  found  their  whole 
set  of  pupils  changed  between  their  ante-  and  post- 
diluvian lessons." 

Science.  It  would  not  be  too  much  to  say  that  the 
whole  Pestalozzian  system  is  based  upon,  and  developed 
through,  science  and  the  scientific  method.  There 
remains,  therefore,  only  the  special  work  in  science,  as 
such,  to  be  considered.  Here  again  Pestalozzi  starts 
with  ultimate  beginnings,  so  far  as  these  are  known  and 
useful  for  educational  purposes.  When,  he  says,  a 
child  has  learned  to  observe  accurately  and  to  express 
correctly — in  an  elementary  manner — what  happens 
when  salt  and  sugar  are  dissolved  in  water :  the  change 
from  liquid  to  solid  states  :  their  crystallisation :  the 
fermentation  of  wine  in  the  cellar :  its  turning  sour  and 
becoming  vinegar :  the  transformation  of  alabaster  into 
plaster,  marble  into  lime,  sand  into  glass,  etc.,  he  has 
developed  in  himself  the  elementary  scientific  percepts, 
and  is  likely  to  have  a  tendency  towards  further  scientific 
investigation. 

Science  teaching,  he  says,  is  chiefly  (if  not  only)  valu- 
able— in  the  early  stages  of  education — for  developing 


234  PESTALOZZI. 

in  the  individual  their  powers  of  intuition  and  thought, 
so  that  they  may  be  enabled  to  judge  wisely  and  act 
independently  in  the  affairs  of  life.  It  is  through  in- 
tuitions (involving  observations  and  perceptions)  that 
nature,  and  life,  educate  men  from  their  first  moment 
to  their  last ;  and,  therefore,  the  educator  must  educate 
in  a  like  manner,  or  he  will  hinder  rather  than  help  a 
man's  development. 

Hence  Pestalozzi's  efforts  to  find  the  very  simplest 
beginnings  of  knowledge  (through  intuitions),  so  that 
the  learner  might  obtain  a  method  and  a  habit  of  judg- 
ing, inquiring  and  classifying.  "  The  simple  question  : 
'  What  materials  in  the  three  natural  kingdoms  can  man 
use  for  his  clothing  ?  '  gives  an  example  of  this.  The 
child  will  consider  and  examine,  from  this  point  of  view, 
many  materials  which  he  thinks  may  help  him  towards 
finding  the  answer  to  this  technological  problem.  By 
such  means  he  himself  constructs  the  knowledge  which 
he  is  to  obtain.  Of  course  the  necessary  subject  matter 
must  be  made  accessible  to  him  in  every  possible  way." 

Of  his  actual  methods  we  get  some  direct  information 
from  one  of  his  own  pupils.  De  Guimps  speaks  of  "  our 
mountain  excursions.  ...  As  soon  as  we  got  to  the 
high  mountain  pastures  under  the  pines,  we  lost  our 
feeling  of  fatigue,  and  fell  to  playing  games  or  collect- 
ing herbs  and  minerals.  ...  On  returning  from  these 
excursions  the  pupils  had  to  describe  them,  either  orally 
or  in  writing,  according  to  their  ages.  There  was  gener- 
ally a  great  deal  to  say,  as  our  attention  was  always 
carefully  drawn  to  everything  likely  to  prove  instructive. 
These  excursions  were,  in  fact,  practical  lessons  in 
natural  history  and  geography." 

Pestalozzi,  in  speaking  of  Kriisi,  says:    "In  conse- 


ELEMENTARY  SCIENCE.  235 

quence  of  our  gathering  plants,  during  the  summer,  and 
of  the  conversations  to  which  this  gave  rise,  he  was 
brought  to  the  conviction  that  the  whole  round  of 
knowledge,  to  the  acquisition  of  which  our  senses  are 
instrumental,  depended  on  an  attentive  observation  of 
nature,  and  on  a  careful  collection  and  preservation  of 
whatever  she  presents  to  our  thirst  for  knowledge  ". 

In  the  institute  the  masters  brought  different  objects 
under  the  pupils'  immediate  observation,  and,  by  careful 
questioning,  encouraged  them  to  tell  what  they  observed. 
The  objects  generally  taken  were  such  as  the  pupils 
brought  home  from  their  walks;  but  these  were  sup- 
plemented by  collections  of  minerals,  plants,  stuffed 
animals,  etc. 

"  Natural  history  and  physical  science  were  taught 
entirely  without  plan,  though,  in  some  instances,  in  a 
manner  decidedly  superior.  The  children  were  led  to 
observe  and  to  examine  for  themselves  such  objects  and 
phenomena  as  were  within  reach ;  and,  to  enlarge  the 
sphere  of  their  knowledge,  their  teachers  made  excur- 
sions with  them  in  different  directions  through  the 
country.  Sometimes  they  would  all  travel  together,  at 
other  times  they  were  divided  into  several  troops,  which, 
on  their  return  home,  communicated  to  each  other  the 
results  of  their  observations.  In  an  establishment  in 
which  there  were  no  standing  vacations,  a  few  weeks 
every  year  could  well  be  devoted  to  such  expeditions, 
without  encroaching  on  the  time  of  their  regular  studies  ; 
and,  in  a  country  so  eminent  for  the  abundance  and 
variety  of  its  natural  productions,  it  was  impossible 
that  the  pupils  should  not,  under  the  guidance  of  intel- 
ligent teachers,  acquire  rich  stores  of  real  information. 
The  only  objection  that  lay  against  the  method  pur- 


236  PESTALOZZI. 

sued  in  the  institution  on  these  subjects,  was  that  the 
pupils  did  not  acquire  a  comprehensive  view  of  the 
sciences,  but  that  their  knowledge,  being  gathered  as  it 
were  upon  casualties  in  the  first  instance,  had  a  ten- 
dency afterwards  to  remain  fragmentary"  (Dr.  Biber). 

In  his  Report  to  the  Society  of  the  Friends  of  Education, 
written  in  1800,  while  he  was  at  Burgdorf,  Pestalozzi 
says  :  '*  If  the  child  knows  simple  bodies — air,  earth, 
water  and  fire — I  show  him  the  effects  of  these  ele- 
ments on  bodies  which  he  knows,  and  as  he  learns  to 
know  the  properties  of  several  simple  bodies,  I  demon- 
strate to  him  the  different  effects  obtained  by  uniting 
one  body  to  another;  and  lead  him,  always  by  the 
simplest  course  of  sense-impressions,  to  the  boundaries 
of  the  higher  sciences  ". 

No  one  could  be  more  opposed  to  the  verbal  method 
in  science-teaching,  i.e.,  the  lecture  and  text-book 
methods.  He  says  :  "  All  science-teaching  that  is  dic- 
tated, explained  and  analysed  by  men  who  have  not 
learnt  truly  to  think  and  speak  in  agreement  with  the 
laws  of  nature :  all  science-teaching  of  which  the 
definitions  are  forced,  as  if  by  magic,  into  the  minds 
of  children  like  a  Dens  ex  Machina,  or,  rather,  are 
blown  into  their  ears  after  the  manner  of  a  stage- 
prompter — so  far  as  it  does  go  in — must  necessarily 
degrade  into  a  miserable  caricature  of  education. 

"  For  where  the  fundamental  powers  of  the  human 
mind  are  left  unawakened ;  and  when  words  are 
crowded  upon  the  sleeping  powers,  we  make  dreamers, 
who  dream  unreasonably  and  irregularly,  in  proportion 
as  the  words,  crammed  into  these  unhappy  open- 
mouthed  creatures,  are  big  and  pretentious.  Such 
scholars  dream  of  anything  in  the  world  except  that 


MUSIC.  237 

they  are  asleep  and  dreaming.  ...  I  do  not  deny  that 
even  such  methods  may  turn  out  satisfactory  tailors, 
shoemakers,  tradesmen  and  soldiers ;  but  I  do  deny 
that  they  can  produce  a  tailor  or  a  tradesman  who  is  a 
man  in  the  highest  sense  of  the  word." 

Writing  of  his  visit  to  Yverdon,  in  1805,  Froebel 
says:  "In  natural  history  I  heard  only  the  botany. 
The  principal  teacher,  who  also  prepared  the  plan  of 
instruction  for  this  subject  throughout  the  school,  was 
Hopf,  who  was  an  active  young  man  like  the  rest.  The 
curriculum  arranged  and  carried  out  by  him  had  in  it 
much  that  was  excellent.  In  each  individual  case,  e.g., 
the  shape  and  position  of  leaves,  flowers,  etc,  he  would 
first  obtain  all  the  possible  varieties  of  form,  by  question 
and  answer  between  the  class  and  himself,  and  then  he 
would  pick  out  from  the  results  the  form  which  was 
before  them  in  nature.  These  lessons  were  in  this  way 
made  attractive." 

Music.  We  have  already  seen  the  high  value  which 
Pestalozzi  attached  to  music  as  a  moral  influence. 
Writing  of  it  as  a  means  of  aesthetic  development,  he 
says  :  "  Nature  has  two  principal  and  general  means  of 
leading  human  activity  towards  the  cultivation  of  the 
arts,  and  these  should  be  used,  if  not  before,  at  least  at 
the  same  time  as  any  particular  means.  They  are 
singing  and  the  sense  of  the  beautiful.  The  mother 
lulls  her  child  with  song ;  but  here,  as  in  all  else,  we 
refuse  to  follow  the  law  of  nature.  .  .  .  Why  has  not 
the  progress  of  the  arts  during  so  many  centuries 
managed  to  find  us  what  is  necessary  to  carry  on 
these  lullabies  in  after  life  ?  Why  has  it  not  given  us 
a  set  of  national  songs  capable  of  elevating  the  very 
humblest  souls,   and  passing   from  the  simple   cradle 


238  PESTALOZZI. 

melody  to  the  sublime  hymn  of  praise  to  God  ?  I  am 
incapable  of  supplying  the  want,  alas  !  I  can  only  call 
attention  to  it."  There  is  something  specially  striking 
in  such  views  in  one  who  '*  could  not  even  sing,  though, 
when  unusually  excited  or  elated,  would  hum  to  him- 
self snatches  of  poetry ;  not,  however,  with  very  much 
tune". 

At  Burgdorf  M.  Buss  was  the  teacher  of  music. 
Ramsauer  tells  us  that :  "  The  thirty  or  forty  children 
of  both  sexes  in  Pestalozzi's  old  school  came  from  the 
town  to  the  castle  to  take  part  in  the  singing.  Buss 
made  his  pupils  sing  as  they  walked,  two  by  two, 
holding  each  other's  hand,  up  and  down  the  big  cor- 
ridors of  the  castle.  This  was  our  greatest  pleasure.  .  .  . 
Indeed  singing  was  one  of  our  chief  sources  of  enjoy- 
ment in  the  institute.  We  sang  everywhere — out  of 
doors,  during  our  walks,  and,  in  the  evening,  in  the  court 
of  the  castle ;  and  this  collective  singing  contributed, 
in  no  small  degree,  to  the  harmony  and  good  feeling 
which  prevailed  among  us." 

De  Guimps,  in  describing  the  "  mountain  excursions  " 
from  Yverdon,  says  :  "  We  would  sing  gaily  as  we  passed 
through  the  villages,  where  the  peasants  often  gave  us 
fruit.  As  soon  as  we  got  to  the  high  mountain  pastures 
under  the  pines  .  .  ,  we  often  assembled  at  some  good 
point  of  view  to  sing  the  wild,  simple  Alpine  melodies 
our  masters  loved  to  teach  us.  To-day,  after  more  than 
sixty  years,  I  can  recall  those  songs  as  vividly  as  in 
those  early  days  when  I  first  sang  them,  and  they  still 
seem  very  beautiful  to  me."  In  another  place  he  tells 
us  that  the  Christmas  Eve  festivities  were  "  interspersed 
with  joyous  songs,  in  which  the  children  always  took 
the  greatest  pleasure.     Indeed,  singing  played  a  great 


MUSIC.  239 

part  in  Pestalozzi's  institute,  and  was  the  joy  of  almost 
every  one  in  the  house.  There  was  singing  everywhere 
and  always." 

Dr.  Biber  speaks  of  "the  cheerful  songs  with  which 
the  youthful  choir  of  Pestalozzi's  pupils  saluted  the 
rising  sun,  or  the  lovely  breezes  of  returning  spring 
.  .  .  the  hymns  of  praise  and  thanksgiving,  especially 
reserved  for  solemn  occasions  ". 

Two  Swiss,  Nageli  and  Pfeiffer,  rendered  great  assist- 
ance in  this  work  by  publishing  some  excellent  collec- 
tions of  sweet  and  simple  songs  for  children  ;  and  training 
the  pupils  in  the  institute  on  a  definite  and  systematic 
plan.  This  was  quite  a  new  feature  in  education,  at 
that  time.  The  teaching  was  based  upon  a  new  musical 
notation  which  had  been  invented  by  Rousseau,  in  1741. 
In  this  the  movable  Do  is  adopted,  and  the  notes  of  the 
scale  are  indicted  by  the  numbers  i.  2.  3.  4.  5.  6.  7.  i. 
For  the  absolute  pitch,  as  it  is  called,  of  the  notes  as 
shown  on  the  staff  the  old  syllable  letter  names  were  re- 
tained, viz.y  ut,  re,  mi,  fa,  sol,  la,  si ;  and  C.  D.  E.  F.  G.  A. 
B.  In  effect,  it  anticipated  all  the  essential  principles  of 
the  Tonic  Sol-Fa  method — indeed  the  Rev.  John  Curwen 
testified  that  he  was  deeply  indebted  to  it.  for  his  system 
— and  has  been  greatly  extended  and  improved  by  M. 
Cheve.  It  is  now  much  used  in  France,  and  is  known 
as  the  Cheve  method.  It  is  also  known  and  used  in 
England. 

The  order  of  teaching  was:  (i)  The  first  exercises 
were  entirely  given  to  the  time  value  of  the  notes ;  the 
crotchet  being  the  unit,  of  which  the  minim  was  the 
double,  and  so  on  for  the  longer  notes :  the  quaver  was 
the  half,  and  so  on  for  the  shorter  notes.  The  rests  were 
taught  in  connection  with  the  note  whose  place  they 


240  PESTALOZZI. 

took.  (2)  Next  the  arrangement  of  notes  in  a  bar:  the 
different  "times"  (common,  triple,  etc.)*  subdivisions 
of  the  lengths  of  notes  by  dotting,  binding  and  group- 
ing. In  this  the  pupil  was  led,  by  questioning,  to  the 
discovery  of  as  much  as  possible.  Both  the  first  and 
second  steps  concern  rhythm,  and,  therefore,  all  the 
exercises  were  on  the  same  note,  so  that  the  pupil's 
attention  might  be  entirely  confined  to  the  time  element. 

Next  is  taken  (3)  ''melody,"  i.e.,  the  ascending  and 
descending  succession  of  notes.  All  the  early  exercises 
are  with  notes  of  equal  length  ;  in  order  that  the  atten- 
tion may  be  given  wholly  to  the  tune  element.  At  this 
point  the  teacher  is,  by  testing,  to  find  out  the  vocal 
capabilities  of  the  child.  Then  comes  (4)  a  study  of 
intervals,  through  the  tetrachord,  i.e.,  the  succession  of 
four  notes  separated  by  a  tone  between  the  first  and 
second  and  the  second  and  third,  and  a  semitone 
between  the  third  and  fourth ;  which  make  up  half 
an  octave.  These  exercises  are  notated  thus:  i.  2.  i  .. 
2.  3.  2  ..  3.  4.  3  ..  4.  I  4.  3.  4  ..  3.  2.  3  ..  2.  I.  2  ..  I.— in 
which  the  double  dots  (..)  stand  for  a  pause,  and  the  per- 
pendicular stroke  for  a  longer  pause.  After  various  exer- 
cises on  this  interval — a  second — there  follow  exercises 
on  the  third,  e.g.,  i.  2.  3.  i.  3  ..  2.  3.  4.  2.  4.  |  4.  3.  2.  4. 
2  ..  3.  2.  I.  3.  I.  etc. ;  and  so  on  with  the  other  intervals. 
When  these  have  been  mastered,  the  teacher  is  to  sing 
the  same  or  similar  intervals,  and  ask  the  pupils  to  tell 
what  he  has  sung.  These  exercises  will  train  both 
voice  and  ear. 

The  above  exercises  are  carried  on  by  means  of  this 
diagram  on  the  blackboard  : — 


MUSIC.  241 

The  teacher  is  to  indicate  with  a  pointer  the  various 
successions  to  be  sung :  the  four  notes  being  called 
I.  2.  3.  4. 

The  next  step  (5)  consists  in  working  with  two  tetra- 
chords.  In  the  first  exercise  the  last  note  of  the  first 
tetrachord  becomes  the  first  note  of  the  second.  Next 
the  second  tetrachord  is  started  one  note  higher  than 
the  last  note  of  the  first  tetrachord,  e.g. — 

(a)  I.  2.  3.  4.  (b)  I.  2.  3.  4. 

:    :     :    I.  2.  3.  4.  :     :     :     :  i,  2.  3.  4. 

Now  since  the  last  interval  in  the  tetrachord  must  be  a 
semitone,  it  will  be  seen  that  these  exercises  give  us,  in 
connected  form :  i.  2.  3.  4.  5.  6.  yb  and  i.  2.  3.  4.  5.  6. 

7-1. 

Thus  the  learner  is  introduced  to  sharps  and  flats, 
and  the  scales.  This  will  easily  be  seen  if  we  use  the 
ordinary  letter  names  (absolute  pitch),  and  extend  the 
exercises. 

(a)  C.  D.  E.  F.  (b) 

F.  G.  A.  Bb. 

Bb  C.  D.  Eb. 

Eb  F.  G.  Ab. 

In  connection  with  these  exercises  the  staff  is  intro- 
duced. At  first  all  the  exercises  are  written  with  the  C 
clef,  because  all  the  notes  can  be  kept  within  the  staff, 
and  the  beginner  is  thus  less  likely  to  get  confused. 
Leger  lines  are  introduced  later  on  ;  and  the  chro- 
matic scale  is  evolved  through  the  above  exercises. 
The  pupils  are  thoroughly  questioned  on  the  differences 
between  the  diatonic  and  the  chromatic  scales,  until 
the  teacher  is  quite  convinced  that  they  have  mastered 
them. 

16 


C.  D. 

E.  F. 

G.  A. 

B.  C. 

D.  E. 

FjfG. 

A.  B. 

C#D. 

242  PESTALOZZI. 

After  this  the  pupil  is  to  be  taken  through  voice 
culture,  harmony  and  composition.  But  as  all  this  is 
beyond  the  elements,  so  far  as  young  children  are  con- 
cerned, we  need  not  even  give  an  outline  of  it.  Suffi- 
cient, it  is  hoped,  has  been  said  to  give  an  idea  of  the 
general  method. 

Manual  Work  and  Physical  Training.  Of  this  Pes- 
talozzi  says  :  "In  endeavouring  to  impart  to  the  child 
those  practical  abilities  which  every  man  stands  in  need 
of,  we  ought  to  follow  essentially  the  same  progress  as 
in  the  communication  of  knowledge;  beginning  from 
an  alphabet  of  abilities,  if  I  may  so  express  myself: 
that  is  to  say,  from  the  simplest  practical  exercises, 
which,  being  combined  with  each  other,  would  serve 
to  develop  in  the  child  a  general  fund  of  ability,  to 
be  applied  to  whatever  purpose  circumstances  might 
render  it  necessary  in  after  life. 

"  Such  an  alphabet,  however,  has  not  yet  been 
found,  and  that  from  the  obvious  reason  that  it  has 
not  been  sought  for.  I  am  not  inclined  to  think  that 
it  would  be  very  difficult  to  discover  it,  especially  if  the 
research  were  made  with  the  same  zeal  with  which 
even  the  trivial  abilities  connected  with  the  operation 
of  money-getting  are  attended  to.  If  once  discovered 
it  would  be  of  essential  benefit  to  mankind.  It  ought 
to  comprise  the  simplest  performances  of  the  bodily 
organs  of  action,  such  as  striking,  carrying,  throwing, 
pushing,  pulling,  turning,  twisting,  swinging,  etc.  What- 
ever manipulations  may  occur  in  any  calling  may  be 
reduced  to  some  one  or  more  of  the  simple  actions  and 
their  combinations.  The  alphabet  of  abilities  should 
therefore  consist  of  a  complete  succession  of  them  all, 
arranged  in  the  order  in  which  they  follow  each  other 


MANUAL   WORK.  243 

practically,  according  to  the  structure  of  the  human 
body,  and  the  greater  or  less  pliability  of  its  different 
parts. 

"  Our  popular  education,  of  course,  knows  nothing 
whatever  of  a  succession  of  exercises  which  would  lead 
from  those  simplest  performances  to  the  highest  de- 
gree of  bodily  self-command,  in  which  we  might  com- 
bine them  in  a  variety  of  ways ;  and  use  our  arms  and 
legs,  now  in  parallel,  and  then  in  opposite  directions. 
.  .  .  We  have  schools  for  spelling,  for  writing,  for 
learning  the  catechism,  but  we  have  no  schools  for 
the  education  of  human  beings.  .  .  . 

**  In  cultivating  our  practical  abilities  we  are  obliged 
to  act ;  whereas  knowledge  may  be  obtained  in  an  almost 
passive  state  :  we  need  only  open  our  eyes  and  our  ears. 
In  this  there  is  no  exertion  of  the  will,  at  least  not  so 
far  as  to  qualify  the  impression  to  be  received ;  the 
character  of  which  depends,  on  the  contrary,  on  the 
object  of  nature  that  is  presented  to  our  senses  at  the 
time.  But  in  the  exercise  of  our  abilities  we  are  the 
prime  movers,  the  originators  of  the  fact  itself;  we 
determine  and  qualify  the  act  which  we  intend  to  per- 
form ;  and  though  we  are  obliged  to  confine  ourselves 
within  the  limits  which  the  law  of  our  physical  nature 
has  prescribed  to  us  in  our  powers  and  organs  of 
action,  yet  we  are  not,  as  is  the  case  in  perception, 
mainly  dependent  on  outward  objects. 

"  The  same  principles  by  which  the  development  of 
our  practical  abilities  is  regulated,  ought  also  to  preside 
over  their  application.  Whatever  is  calculated  to  lead 
to  a  partial  and  merely  fragmentary  cultivation  or  use 
of  those  abilities,  which  are  essentially  required  to 
satisfy  the  wants  of  human  nature  generally,  and  the 

16* 


244  PESTALOZZI. 

claims  of  each  peculiar  calling  and  station,  is  contrary 
to  the  true  art  of  education ;  because  out  of  harmony 
with  that  law  of  nature  which  enjoins  upon  us  the 
maintenance  of  harmony  and  equilibrium  in  our  own 
state,  as  well  as  in  the  different  relationships  of  life  in 
which  we  are  providentially  placed.  .  .  . 

"The  alphabet  of  abilities  is  intended  to  lay  the 
groundwork  of  future  virtues,  in  the  progress  of  our 
moral  education.  Self-command  over  our  physical 
powers  and  movements  is,  as  it  were,  the  apprentice- 
ship of  virtue,  in  the  bondage  of  which  we  are  to  be 
kept,  until  the  development  of  higher  powers  assigns  to 
our  physical  nature  at  once  a  subordinate  position,  and 
a  more  elevated  aim.  Upon  the  attainment  of  practical 
abilities  positive  rules  are  to  be  built ;  in  the  same 
manner  as  clear  ideas  upon  distinct  and  comprehensive 
intuitions ;  and  the  former,  as  well  as  the  latter,  are  to 
be  summed  up  in  definitions.  ...  A  neglect  of  the 
practical  abilities  of  life  produces  exactly  the  same  effect 
as  the  mistake  of  inculcating  the  doctrines  of  virtue  and 
of  faith,  before  a  practical  feeling  of  either  has  been 
produced  in  the  mind." 

De  Guimps  gives  an  account  of  the  manual  work  and 
physical  training  as  carried  on  at  Yverdon.  "  When 
the  weather  permitted,  some  hours  in  the  afternoon 
were,  every  week,  given  to  military  exercises.  The 
pupils  were  formed  into  a  regiment,  with  flag,  drum, 
band  and  arsenal ;  and  soon  became  skilful  in  the  most 
complicated  manoeuvres.  When  they  engaged  in  shoot- 
ing, the  non-commissioned  officers  were  told  off  to  make 
the  cartridges,  under  the  directions  of  the  chief  in- 
structor. From  time  to  time  they  had  sham  fights  in 
some  suitable  place  a  few  miles  from  the  town.     On 


MANUAL  WORK.  245 

these  occasions  they  started  very  early  in  the  morning, 
accompanied  by  a  waggon  in  which  were  the  provisions 
and  ammunition.  Many  parents  and  lookers-on  often 
joined  the  party;  so  that  it  was  an  exciting  time  for 
the  pupils.  Sometimes,  too,  they  practised  target-shoot- 
ing :  the  prize  for  which  was  an  ewe  with  its  lamb,  and 
the  use  of  a  little  shed  in  the  garden. 

"  Gymnastics,  prisoner's  base,  and  other  games  were 
played  regularly.  .  .  .  Manual  labour  had  a  place  in 
Pestalozzi's  programme  :  it  was  often  tried  at  the  insti- 
tute, but  never  kept  up  in  a  regular  manner.  The  large 
number  of,  and  the  diversity  amongst,  the  pupils  and 
the  occupations  seemed  to  prove  an  insurmountable 
difficulty.  Gardening  succeeded  best  of  all.  Some- 
times the  pupils  had  their  own  little  plots  to  cultivate ; 
and  sometimes  they  were  sent  by  turns,  in  twos  and 
threes,  to  work  for  a  few  hours  under  the  directions  of 
a  gardener.  Some  did  fairly  well  at  book-binding  and 
cardboard-work,  in  which  they  made  the  solids  for  the 
study  of  geometry." 

In  the  letter  describing  his  experiences  at  Stanz 
Pestalozzi  says  :  ''  I  tried  to  connect  study  with  manual 
labour,  the  school  with  the  workshop,  and  make  one 
thing  of  them.  ...  I  am  more  than  ever  convinced 
that  as  soon  as  we  have  educational  establishments 
connected  with  workshops,  and  carried  on  upon  a  truly 
psychological  basis,  a  generation  will  inevitably  be  pro- 
duced which  will  prove  to  us  by  experience  that  our 
present  studies  do  not  need  a  tenth  part  of  the  time  or 
trouble  we  now  give  to  them." 

Pestalozzi's  purpose  in  manual  work  was,  in  the  first 
instance — as  at  Neuhof  and  Stanz — somewhat  narrow 
and  likely  to  prejudice  a  child's  future ;  for  it  was  de- 


246  PESTALOZZI. 

signed  to  teach  him  an  occupation  by  which  he  would 
earn  his  living.  To  do  this  before  the  pupil  had  shown 
what  special  abilities,  inclinations  and  opportunities 
he  might  have,  was  likely  to  dwarf  his  development  and 
sacrifice  his  social  usefulness.  He  seems  to  have  re- 
alised this,  and  based  his  theory  on  the  point  of  view 
contained  in  this  question  :  *'  What  are  the  means  of 
developing  in  the  child  those  practical  abilities  which 
the  ultimate  purpose  of  his  existence,  as  well  as  the 
changeable  positions  and  relations  of  life  will,  or  may, 
require  of  him ;  and  cultivating  them  to  such  a  degree 
of  perfection,  that  the  fulfilment  of  his  duties  will  be  to 
him,  not  only  possible  or  easy,  but  in  reality  a  second 
nature." 

Latin.  A  very  interesting  account  of  the  application 
of  his  principles,  by  Pestalozzi  himself,  to  the  teaching  of 
Latin,  is  given  by  De  Guimps.  ^'  He  considered  the  best 
means  of  teaching  a  foreign  language  to  be  that  which 
nature  employs  in  teaching  a  child  to  speak  its  mother- 
tongue,  viz.,  constant  practice  in  the  spoken  language. 
It  was  thus  that,  with  the  addition  of  a  little  grammar, 
the  Germans  learned  French,  and  the  French  learned 
German,  most  successfully,  at  Yverdon.  Pestalozzi, 
thereupon,  asked  himself  if  it  would  not  be  possible  to 
use  the  like  means  for  teaching  a  dead  language,  and 
he  resolved  to  try  the  experiment." 

So,  when  sufficiently  recovered  from  a  painful  illness 
to  lie  on  the  sofa,  he  caused  ''  some  six  or  seven  children 
who  had  not  yet  begun  Latin,  amongst  them  the  writer 
of  these  lines,  [to  be]  brought  to  his  couch  every  day. 
[He]  had  with  much  care  selected  from  Ccesar's  Com- 
mentaries a  number  of  short  passages  and  detached 
phrases,  all  bearing  on  the  same  subject,  and  nearly  all 


LATIN.  247 

containing  the  same  words ;  with  these  selections  he 
had,  in  his  illegible  hand,  covered  several  sheets.  As 
we  stood  by  the  couch,  where  he  lay  weak  and  suffering, 
he  would  give  us  a  phrase  which  we  all  had  to  repeat 
until  we  knew  it  by  heart.  He  would  then  explain  the 
different  words,  and  point  out  some  of  the  changes 
which  they  undergo  when  it  is  required  to  modify  the 
sense  of  the  sentence. 

"  In  this  way  the  study  of  syntax  and  accidence  went 
on  hand  in  hand.  We  were  soon  able  to  make  certain 
changes  for  ourselves,  and  to  construct  sentences  of  such 
elements  as  were  known  to  us  ;  that  is  to  say,  with  a 
very  limited  vocabulary,  and  a  very  narrow  range  of 
topics,  we  spoke  Latin  like  Caesar.  These  lessons  were 
continued  during  the  whole  period  of  the  old  man's  con- 
valescence." 

Pestalozzi,  in  his  Swans  Song,  asserts  that  "  A  child 
soon  learns  to  speak  a  foreign  language  even  from  an 
illiterate  person,  who  merely  talks  to  him  without  any 
attempt  at  instruction  ;  but  he  does  not  do  this  with  a 
skilful  teacher  who  adopts  the  mechanical  grammatical 
method  ". 

Dr.  Mayo  gives  this  account  of  Pestalozzi's  plan  : 
'*  He  does  not  begin  with  definitions,  because  a  child 
never  comprehends  them  ;  but,  first  calling  up  the  idea 
in  the  child's  mind  by  conversing  with  him,  he  gives 
him  the  simple  sentence  :  Leo  est  animal.  Here  the 
words  leo  and  animal  being,  one  almost  the  same  the 
other  just  the  same  as,  those  which  express  the  same 
idea  in  English,  they  readily  enter  the  child's  mind. 
From  this  he  proceeds  to :  An  apis  is  what  ?  An 
animal,  says  the  child,  using  the  word  he  had  learnt 
just  before.     Proceeding  in  this  manner  he  stocks  the 


248  PESTALOZZI. 

child's  mind  with  words,  before  he  enters  on  the  in- 
flections of  those  words — always  endeavouring  to  link 
what  the  child  has  next  to  learn  with  what  he  has 
already  acquired. 

"  In  the  declensions  he  does  not  propose  to  the 
child  :  Musa,  a  muse  ;  musce,  of  a  muse  ;  words  which 
cannot  interest  the  child,  because  they  represent  only 
parts  of  ideas.  He  involves  the  important  word  in 
sentences,  e.g.,  Rosa  est  flos ;  Rosce  odor  est  sttavis,  etc., 
through  all  the  cases.  The  child  having  learnt  the 
inflection  of  Rosa  has  a  similar  word  proposed  to  him, 
also  enveloped  in  little  sentences,  but  he  is  now  re- 
quired to  find  the  terminations.  In  teaching  syntax  he 
gives  examples  which  lead  the  child  to  find  the  rule  ; 
and  then  makes  it  apply  the  rule,  in  the  same  way  as 
in  the  declensions. 

*' The  advantages  of  this  method  are  briefly  these: 
you  do  not  disgust  the  child  in  his  first  intellectual 
exertions  ;  you  exercise  other  faculties  besides  memory ; 
you  enrich  his  mind  with  a  great  number  of  ideas ;  and 
you  furnish  him  with  a  copia  verborium  before  you  set 
him  down  to  translate  a  classical  author,  or  to  express 
his  own  ideas  in  a  connected  chain  in  the  language." 

Pestalozzi  points  out  that  whilst  some  are  ready 
to  admit — because  they  cannot  help  doing  so — that 
modern  languages  may  be  learned  in  this  way,  yet 
they  most  strongly  maintain  that  the  orthodox  method 
of  teaching  the  dead  languages  has  proved,  by  its 
successful  results,  to  be  sound,  and  that  it  is  really 
based  on  a  firm  and  psychological  foundation  as  to  its 
advanced  stages.  While  he  admits  the  latter  claim — as 
to  the  advanced  stages — he  affirms  that  the  old  method 
of  teaching  the  rudiments  of  the  classics  is,  both  from 


TEACHING  OF   MORALS.  249 

the  psychological  standpoint  and  in  regard  to  the 
memory  element,  unnatural  and  inefficient. 

He  holds  that  the  study  of  language,  properly  carried 
out,  forms  the  connecting  link  between  the  faculty  of 
sense-perception  and  the  faculty  of  thought.  The 
three  faculties,  perception,  language  and  thought,  are 
the  whole  means  of  intellectual  education.  For  these 
reasons  the  study  of  foreign  languages  should  be  in 
complete  agreement  with  that  of  the  mother-tongue. 
Good  practical  proof  of  the  truth  of  this,  says  Pesta- 
lozzi,  is  found  in  the  fact  that  uneducated  foreign  nurse- 
maids are  able  successfully  to  teach  their  own  language 
to  little  children  by  following  this  natural  method ; 
and  that  foreigners  soon  pick  up  the  language  of  a 
country  by  the  like  method. 

Pestalozzi  seems  to  have  taken  up  the  question  of 
the  teaching  of  the  dead  languages  with  all  his  ardent 
and  intense  enthusiasm.  Dr.  Mayo  sa3/s  :  "  Pestalozzi 
is  mad  about  the  application  of  his  system  to  the 
classics  ...  as  he  had  a  clever  little  German  to  aid 
him  he  may  throw  some  light  on  this  most  difficult 
branch  ". 

Teaching  of  Morals.  Positive  morality  was,  like 
other  things,  to  be  taught  through  facts  and  acts  not 
words.  "  Gliilphi  was  deeply  impressed  with  the  truth 
that  education  is  not  imparted  by  words  but  by  facts. 
For  kindling  the  flame  of  love  and  devotion  in  their 
souls,  he  trusted  not  to  the  hearing  and  learning  by 
heart  of  passages  setting  forth  the  beauties  of  love  and 
its  blessings ;  but  he  endeavoured  to  manifest  to  them 
a  spirit  of  genuine  charity,  and  to  encourage  them  to 
the  practice  of  it  both  by  example  and  precept.  He  led 
them  to  live  in  love.  .  .  .  If  there  was  any  one  ill  in  the 


250  PESTALOZZI. 

house  of  any  of  the  children,  were  it  father  or  mother, 
or  brother  or  sister,  or  even  the  meanest  servant,  he 
never  failed  to  ask  the  child,  the  moment  he  entered 
the  school-room,  how  the  invalid  did,  and  the  child  had 
to  give  him  a  detailed  and  accurate  account.  .  .  . 

"  The  children  were  asked  likewise,  whether  they  had 
spoken  themselves  to  the  invalid,  and  whether  they 
had  contributed  to  alleviate  his  sufferings,  if  it  were 
only  by  avoiding  every  noise  and  bustle  in  the  house. 
Of  the  older  children,  Gliilphi  inquired  whether  they 
sat  up  with  their  sick,  and  how  long  they  could  bear 
it ;  and  he  testified  to  them  his  approbation  when  he 
found  they  did  so  willingly.  ...  It  was  in  this  spirit 
he  taught  faith  and  love  practically ;  and  the  children 
showed  that  they  understood  his  instruction,  more 
frequently  by  tears  of  emotion,  or  by  a  significant  si- 
lence, than  by  clever  answers  to  catechetical  questions 
on  the  respective  doctrines  "  (Leonard  and  Gertrude). 

Of  the  moral  education  of  the  children  at  Stanz  he 
writes :  **  My  one  aim  was  to  make  their  new  life  in 
common,  and  their  new  powers,  awaken  a  feeling  of 
brotherhood  amongst  the  children,  and  make  them 
affectionate,  just  and  considerate.  I  reached  this  end 
without  much  difficulty.  Amongst  these  seventy  wild 
beggar-children  there  soon  existed  such  peace,  friend- 
ship and  cordial  relations  as  are  rare  even  between 
actual  brothers  and  sisters."  This  he  did  by  the 
example  of  his  own  behaviour  to  them,  and  by  giving 
them  opportunities  for  behaving  similarly  to  others. 
This  touching  incident  is  related  by  him  : — 

''When  the  neighbouring  town  of  Altdorf  was  burnt 
down,  I  gathered  the  children  round  me,  and  said, 
'  Altdorf  has  been  burnt  down ;   perhaps,  at  this  very 


TEACHING  OF   MORALS.  25 1 

moment,  there  are  a  hundred  children  there  without 
home,  food  or  clothes ;  will  you  not  ask  our  good 
Government  to  let  twenty  of  them  come  and  live  with 
us  ?  '  I  still  seem  to  see  the  emotion  with  which  they 
answered,  '  Oh,  yes,  yes  ! '  '  But,  my  children,'  I  said, 
'  think  well  of  what  you  are  asking !  Even  now  we 
have  scarcely  money  enough  ;  and  it  is  not  at  all  certain 
that  if  these  poor  children  came  to  us,  the  Government 
would  give  us  any  more  than  they  do  at  present,  so 
that  you  might  have  to  work  harder,  and  share  your 
clothes  with  these  children,  and  sometimes,  perhaps, 
go  without  food.  Do  not  say,  then,  that  you  would 
like  them  to  come  unless  you  are  quite  prepared  for  all 
these  consequences.'  After  having  spoken  to  them  in 
this  way  as  seriously  as  I  could,  I  made  them  repeat  all 
I  had  said,  to  be  quite  sure  that  they  had  thoroughly 
understood  what  the  consequences  of  their  request 
would  be.  But  they  were  not  the  least  shaken  in  their 
decision,  and  all  repeated,  '  Yes,  yes,  we  are  quite  ready 
to  work  harder,  eat  less,  and  share  our  clothes,  for  we 
want  them  to  come  '." 

Pestalozzi  then  reveals — quite  unconsciously,  ap- 
parently— one  of  his  deep  insights  into  the  possibilities 
of  human  education.  He  writes:  "I  followed  up  this 
awakening  of  the  sentiments  by  exercises  intended  to 
teach  the  children  self-control,  and  interest  the  best 
natures  amongst  them  in  the  practical  questions  of 
everyday  life.  It  will  easily  be  understood,  in  this  re- 
spect, it  was  not  possible  to  organise  any  system  of 
discipline  for  the  establishment ;  that  could  only  come 
slowly,  as  the  general  work  developed.  .  .  .  One  young 
girl,  for  instance,  who  had  been  little  better  than  a 
savage,  by  keeping  her  head  and  body  upright,  and  not 


252  PESTALOZZI. 

looking  about,  made  more  progress  in  her  moral  educa- 
tion than  any  one  would  have  believed  possible.  These 
experiences  have  shown  me  that  the  mere  habit  of 
carrying  oneself  well  does  much  more  for  the  education 
of  the  moral  sentiments  than  any  amount  of  telling  and 
lecturing  in  which  this  simple  fact  is  ignored."  This 
interaction  of  mind  on  body,  and  body  on  mind,  as  a 
means  of  development  is  one  of  the  greatest  truths  of 
scientific  education. 

True  to  his  theory  that  all  knowledge  comes  through 
language,  form  and  number,  Pestalozzi  uses  language 
as  a  means  of  moral  education.  He  holds  that  percep- 
tion in  the  intellectual  world  is  associated  with  language, 
in  the  same  way  as  sense-perception  in  the  physical 
world  depends  on  external  objects  (nature).  Therefore, 
in  the  teaching  of  grammar  through  sentence-making, 
etc.,  the  examples  should  be  in  harmony  with  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  learner,  and  should  convey  inspiring 
moral  sentiments  to  the  child's  mind. 

This  idea  he  worked  out,  with  some  detail,  in  The 
Natural  Schoolmaster :  a  Father  s  Lessons  on  the  Custo- 
mary use  of  Words,  a  legacy  from  Father  Pestalozzi  to  his 
pupils,  written  some  time  between  1802  and  1805,  and 
first  published  in  1829.  In  this  book  he  uses  words  as 
the  texts  for  short  moral  exhortations.  Thus:  ''achten, 
achtend,  geachtet,  erachten,  beobachten,  hoehachten, 
verachten,  sich  selbstachten ;  die  Achtung,  die  Selb- 
stachtung.  Children !  the  first  word  I  am  going  to 
explain  to  you  is  Selbstachtung  (self-attention,  self-re- 
spect). This  it  is  which  makes  you  blush  when  you 
have  done  wrong:  which  causes  you  to  love  virtue, 
pray  to  God,  believe  in  everlasting  life,  and  overcome 
sin.     This  it  is  that  makes  you  honour  old  age  and 


TEACHING   OF   MORALS.  253 

wisdom,  and  prevents  you  turning  aside  from  poverty 
and  distress :  enables  you  to  resist  error  and  falsehood  : 
and  teaches  you  to  love  the  truth.  Children  !  this  it  is 
that  makes  the  coward  a  hero  :  the  idler  a  worker ;  and 
causes  us  to  respect  the  stranger,  and  go  to  the  rescue 
of  the  outcast  and  fallen." 

In  a  letter  to  Gessner,  quoted  by  Kriisi  in  his 
preface  to  the  work,  Pestalozzi  writes:  "I  hope  to 
complete  my  reading  lessons  by  a  legacy  to  my  pupils, 
in  which,  after  my  death,  they  will  find,  connected 
with  the  principal  verbs  in  the  language,  and  ex- 
pressed in  such  a  manner  as  to  strike  them  as  they 
struck  me,  a  certain  number  of  moral  instructions,  all 
drawn  from  my  own  experience ".  Here  are  some 
examples : — 

"  Breathing, 

"  On  thy  breath  hangs  thy  life,  O  man  !  When  thou 
breathest  wrath  and  vengeance,  and  convertest  the  pure 
air  of  heaven  into  poison  within  thy  lungs,  what  else 
doest  thou  but  hasten  the  day  when  thou  shalt  be 
breathless,  and  the  oppressed  and  afflicted  shall  be 
delivered  from  the  fury  of  thine  anger  ? 

"  Thinking, 

"Thinking  leads  man  to  knowledge.  He  may  see 
and  hear,  and  read  and  learn  whatever  he  please,  and 
as  much  as  he  please  :  he  will  never  know  any  of  it, 
except  that  which  he  has  thought  over,  that  which  by 
thinking  he  has  made  the  property  of  his  mind.  Is  it 
then  saying  too  much,  if  I  say,  that  man  by  thinking, 
only  becomes  truly  man.  Take  away  thought  from 
man's  life,  and  what  remains  ? 


254  PESTALOZZI. 

' '  Hoping. 

"  Hoping  and  waiting  make  many  a  fool.  And  are 
we,  then,  not  to  hope  at  all  ?  How  unhappy  would 
man  be  without  that  beam  of  hope,  which  in  suffering 
and  sorrow  sheds  light  through  the  darkness  of  his  soul. 
But  his  hope  must  be  intelligent.  He  must  not  hope 
where  there  is  no  hope.  He  must  look  at  the  past  Vv^ith 
a  steady  eye,  in  order  to  know  what  he  may  hope  of  the 
future." 

*'  Threatening. 

"  It  is  a  misfortune  if  one  man  threaten  another. 
Either  he  is  corrupt  who  does  it,  or  he  who  requires  it- 

' '  Failing. 

"All  men  fail,  and  manifold  are  their  failings. 
Nothing  is  perfect  under  the  sun.  But,  unless  a  man 
despise  himself,  he  will  not  think  lightly  of  any  of  his 
failings. 

"Almsgiving. 

"  The  best  alms  is  that  which  enables  the  receiver  to 
cease  from  begging. 

"  Changing. 

"  Change,  my  child,  change  all  that  thou  doest  and 
performest,  until  thou  have  perfected  it,  and  thou  be 
fully  satisfied  with  it.  Change  not  thyself,  however, 
like  a  weathercock  with  every  wind ;  but  change  thy- 
self so  that  thou  mayest  become  better  and  nobler, 
and  that  all  that  thou  doest  may  be  ever  more  perfect 
and  excellent.  No  such  change  will  ever  cause  thee 
to  repent." 

While  such  a  means  of  teaching  morals  has  much 


TEACHING  OF   MORALS.  255 

that  is  suggestive,  and  some  points  that  are  sound,  it 
is — to  say  the  least — somewhat  forced  and  fanciful. 
Here,  as  elsewhere,  Pestalozzi  has  let  his  method  run 
away  with  him. 

One  point  urged  by  Pestalozzi  is  very  striking  and 
important,  viz.,  that  a  mother  must  expect,  sympathise 
with,  and  help  towards  her  child's  independence  of 
herself.  He  says:  "In  the  progress  of  time  the  child 
not  only  is  daily  exercising  and  strengthening  its  phy- 
sical faculties,  but  it  begins  also  to  feel  intellectually 
and  morally  independent.  From  observation  and 
memory  there  is  only  one  step  to  reflection.  Though 
imperfect,  yet  this  operation  is  frequently  found  among 
the  early  exercises  of  the  infant  mind.  The  power- 
ful stimulus  of  inquisitiveness  prompts  to  exertions, 
which,  if  successful,  or  encouraged  by  others,  will  lead 
to  a  habit  of  thought.  .  .  .  The  child,  then,  begins  to 
judge  for  himself,  not  of  things  only,  but  also  of  men  : 
he  acquires  an  idea  of  character :  he  grows,  more  and 
more,  morally  independent''  (On  Infants'  Education). 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

PESTALOZZrS  GENERAL  METHODS  AND  VIEWS. 

The  School  Atmosphere.  The  school  is  not  to  be  a 
mere  learning-shop,  where  it  is  the  child's  work  to  get 
through  certain  tasks,  and  the  teacher's  business  to  see 
that  he  does  it.  The  school  is  to  be  the  home,  with  a 
difference.  There  must  be  the  loving  relation  of  parent 
to  child ;  and  there  must  be,  as  far  as  possible,  the 
same  opportunities  of  using  the  ordinary  actions  and 
objects  of  daily  life  as  means  of  development  and  in- 
struction. 

At  the  Burgdorf  institution  a  visitor  exclaimed :  "  Why, 
this  is  not  a  school:  it  is  a  family!"  Pestalozzi 
said:  "That  is  the  highest  praise  you  can  give  me. 
I  have  succeeded,  thank  God,  in  showing  the  world 
that  there  must  be  no  gulf  between  the  home  and  the 
school ;  and  that  the  latter  is  only  helpful  to  education 
in  so  far  as  it  develops  the  feelings  and  virtues  which 
give  the  charm  and  worth  to  family  life." 

When  Gliilphi  asks  Gertrude,  in  Leonard  and  Ger- 
trude, whether  she  thought  it  would  be  possible  to 
introduce  into  a  regular  school  the  same  methods  that 
she  followed  at  home  with  her  own  children,  she  re- 
plies :  "  I  am  not  sure,  although  I  am  inclined  to  think 
that  what  is  possible  with  ten  children  would  be  possible 
with  forty.     But  it  would  be  difficult  to  find  a  school- 

256 


Johann  Heinrich  Meyer,  1812. 


Pestalozzi. 


An  allegorical  picture;   Pestalozzi  is  in  his  room  at  the  Castle,  yet  the  Castle  is  in 
the  scene  through  the  window. 


From  a  transparency  in  the  possession  oj  Miss  Mayo. 


SCHOOL  ATMOSPHERE.  257 

master  who  would  allow  such  arrangements  in  his 
school." 

Gertrude's  home  education  method  is  thus  described : 
All  the  children,  immediately  after  breakfast,  helped  to 
wash  the  dishes,  and  then  seated  themselves  at  their 
spinning.  First  they  sang  their  morning  hymn,  and 
then  Gertrude  read  aloud  a  chapter  from  the  Bible, 
the  children  repeating  it  after  her,  while  going  on  with 
their  spinning.  Any  particularly  instructive  passage 
was  repeated  until  it  was  known  by  heart.  The  eldest 
daughter  was,  meantime,  engaged  in  making  the  chil- 
dren's beds  in  the  next  room,  but  she  also  said  (to 
herself)  what  the  others  were  saying.  When  she  had 
finished  the  bed  she  went  to  the  garden  and  fetched  the 
vegetables  for  the  day's  dinner.  While  cleaning  these 
she  continued  to  repeat  verses  from  the  Bible. 

Whenever  Gertrude  saw  that  the  children  were  in 
any  difficulty  with  their  wheels  or  cotton,  she  would  go 
to  them  and  put  matters  right.  The  younger  children, 
being  unable  to  spin,  were  set  to  pick  over  the  cotton 
for  carding,  and  this  they  did  with  great  skill.  Ger- 
trude's chief  desire  was  to  train  the  children  in  their 
work :  to  make  them  skilful  and  good  at  it. 

She  was  in  no  hurry  to  teach  them  to  read  and  write. 
It  was  necessary,  she  said,  to  teach  them  to  speak  be- 
fore teaching  reading  or  writing,  for  these  *'  are  only  an 
artificial  sort  of  speech  ".  To  get  them  to  speak  well 
she  made  them  pronounce  syllables  after  her  in  regular 
succession.  These  syllables  she  got  from  an  old  ABC 
book.  But  her  chief  concern  in  this  sort  of  education 
was  to  make  the  children  observe  things.  She  did  not 
say  to  a  child:  "This  is  your  head:  this  your  nose: 
this  your  hand;  this  your  finger".     Nor  did  she  ask: 

17 


258  PESTALOZZI. 

"Which  is  your  eye:  your  ear?"  But  she  would 
say  :  '*  Come  here,  my  child,  I  will  wash  your  little 
hands:  I  will  comb  your  hair:  I  will  cut  your  finger- 
nails ".  In  this  way  the  children  learned  to  name 
these  parts  of  their  body  in  the  course  of  their  ordi- 
nary dealings  with  them  :  there  was  no  mere  verbal 
instruction. 

The  result  was  that  the  children  were  skilful  and 
intelligent ;  and  able  to  do  all  such  things  that  children 
of  their  age  should.  To  educate  them  in  number-work 
she  taught  them  to  count  the  number  of  steps  they  took 
to  go  from  one  end  of  the  room  to  the  other ;  and  she 
made  use  of  two  rows  of  window  panes  (each  row  having 
five  panes  in  it)  to  explain  the  decimal  relations  of 
numbers.  They  also  counted  their  threads,  and  the 
number  of  turns  on  a  reel.  She  taught  them  to  ob- 
serve, intelligently  and  accurately,  many  common  ob- 
jects and  the  forces  of  nature. 

That  Pestalozzi  fully  believed  in  the  possibility  of 
transferring  the  spirit  of  home-education  to  the  school 
is  clearly  shown  by  his  statement  concerning  his  work 
at  Stanz:  *' I  wanted  to  prove  by  my  experiment  that 
if  public  education  is  to  have  any  real  value,  it  must 
imitate  the  methods  which  make  the  merit  of  domestic 
education  ".  In  fact  he  accepted  the  work  with  a  view 
to  prove  that  his  ideas  were  practicable.  In  the  letter 
about  his  work  at  Stanz  he  writes:  *'As  I  have  ex- 
plained my  plan  for  the  public  education  of  the  poor  in 
the  third  and  fourth  parts  of  Leonard  and  Gertrude,  I 
need  not  repeat  it  here.  I  submitted  it  to  the  Director 
Stapfer,  with  all  the  enthusiasm  of  a  man  who  felt  that 
his  hopes  were  about  to  be  realised  ;  and  he  encouraged 
me  with  an  earnestness  which  showed  how  thoroughly 


SCHOOL  ATMOSPHERE.  259 

he  understood  the  needs  of  popular  education.     It  was 
the  same  with  Minister  Rengger." 

His  criticism  on  the  atmosphere  of  the  common 
school  of  his  day  is  very  searching  and  severe:  "Our 
unpsychological  schools  are  in  essence  merely  artificial 
sterilising  machines,  for  destroying  all  the  results  of 
the  power  and  experience  that  nature  herself  calls  to 
life  in  children.  .  .  . 

"  We  leave  children,  up  to  their  fifth  year,  in  the  full 
enjoyment  of  nature ;  we  allow  every  impression  of 
nature  to  influence  them  :  the}^  feel  the  power  of  these  : 
they  learn  to  know  full  well  the  joy  of  unhampered 
freedom  and  all  its  delights.  The  free  natural  bent 
which  the  happy,  untamed,  sensuous  being  derives  from 
his  development,  has  already  taken  in  them  its  most 
definite  direction. 

"  And,  after  they  have  enjoyed  this  happiness  of 
sensuous  life  for  five  full  years,  we  cut  them  off  from  all 
their  natural  surroundings :  tyrannically  bring  to  an 
end  the  delightful  course  of  their  unhampered  freedom  : 
pen  them  up  like  sheep,  whole  herds  huddled  together 
in  stifling  rooms  :  pitilessly  chain  them  for  hours,  days, 
weeks,  months,  years,  to  the  study  of  unattractive  and 
wearisome  letters:  and,  compared  with  their  former 
condition,  tie  them  to  a  maddening  course  of  life  "  {How 
Gertrude  Teaches). 

While  the  intellectual  atmosphere  is  to  be  quickening 
and  natural ;  the  moral  atmosphere  must,  first  and  last, 
be  grounded  in  and  permeated  by  love.  Love  was  the 
key  that  unlocked  the  hearts  of  Glulphi's  pupils,  and 
opened  to  him  the  high  road  to  success.  "  His  com- 
passion and  his  love  brought  the  eminent  qualities 
which  he  possessed  for  the  office  of  a  schoolmaster 

17  * 


26o  PESTALOZZI. 

into  full  play,  and  made  him  a  very  different  man  from 
what  he  had  been  at  first.  He  now  saw  that  it  was  on 
these  tender  feelings  that  all  the  influence  of  Gertrude 
in  her  domestic  circle  rested,  and  when  he  recalled  to 
his  mind  the  image  of  maternal  kindness  and  faithful- 
ness which  he  had  from  the  beginning  chosen  for  his 
model,  he  remembered  at  once  the  beautiful  words  of 
the  Psalmist :  '  Like  as  a  father  pitieth  his  children,  so 
the  Lord  pitieth  them  that  fear  Him  '.  And  he  said  to 
himself:  '  as  the  Lord  pitieth  them  that  fear  Him,  so 
ought  I  to  pity  the  children  of  this  village,  if  I  truly 
love  them,  and  mean  to  be  their  schoolmaster '. 

''  Gertrude  and  Gliilphi  did,  from  morning  to  night, 
all  in  their  power  to  retain  the  confidence  and  affection 
of  the  children.  They  were  constantly  assisting  them 
with  kindness  and  forbearance.  They  knew  that  con- 
fidence can  only  be  obtained  by  a  union  of  power  and 
love,  and  by  deeds  which  claim  gratitude  in  every  human 
breast ;  and,  accordingly,  they  endeavoured  daily  still 
farther  to  attach  the  hearts  of  the  children  to  them- 
selves, by  conferring  upon  them  numberless  obligations, 
in  a  spirit  of  active  charity"  (Leonard  and  Gertrude). 

Writing  of  his  work  at  Stanz,  Pestalozzi  remarks : 
"  Before  all  things  I  was  bound  to  gain  the  confidence 
and  the  love  of  the  children.  I  was  sure  that  if  I  suc- 
ceeded in  this  all  the  rest  would  come  of  itself.  .  .  . 
These  children  gradually  became  attached  to  me ;  some 
indeed  so  deeply  that  they  contradicted  their  parents 
and  friends  when  they  heard  them  say  evil  things  about 
me.  They  felt  that  I  was  not  being  treated  fairly,  and 
loved  me,  I  believe,  the  more  because  of  this." 

Near  the  end  of  his  life  he  writes :  "  Maternal  love 
is  the  most  powerful  agent,  and  affection  is  the  primi- 


TEACHERS'   QUALIFICATIONS.  26 1 

tive  motive  in  education "  {On  Infants  Education). 
'*The  natural  means  for  early  education  are  to  be 
sought  in  the  enlightened  love,  faith  and  tenderness  of 
parents — made  wise  by  a  knowledge  of  all  the  conquests 
humanity  has  accomplished  "  {Swan's  Song). 

Qualifications  of  a  Teacher.  The  schoolmaster  him- 
self must  ''  at  least  be  an  openhearted,  cheerful,  affec- 
tionate and  kind  man,  who  would  be  as  a  father  to  the 
children ;  a  man  made  on  purpose  to  open  children's 
hearts  and  their  mouths,  and  to  draw  forth  their  under- 
standings as  it  were  from  the  hindermost  corner.  In 
most  schools,  however,  it  is  just  the  contrary ;  the 
schoolmaster  seems  as  if  he  were  made  on  purpose  to 
shut  up  children's  mouths  and  hearts,  and  to  bury  their 
good  understandings  ever  so  deep  underground.  That 
is  the  reason  why  healthy  and  cheerful  children,  whose 
hearts  are  full  of  joy  and  gladness,  hardly  ever  like 
school  "  (Christopher  and  Eliza). 

Pestalozzi,  in  How  Gertrude  Teaches,  says :  "  I  finish 
describing ;  otherwise  I  shall  come  to  the  picture  of 
the  greater  number  of  schoolmasters,  of  whom  there  are 
thousands  to-day  who  have — solely  on  account  of  their 
unfitness  to  earn  a  respectable  livelihood  in  any  other 
way — subjected  themselves  to  the  laboriousness  of  this 
occupation ;  and  they,  in  accordance  with  their  unsuit- 
ability  for  anything  better,  look  upon  their  work  as 
leading  to  nothing  further,  but  sufficient  to  keep  them 
from  starvation  ".  In  another  place  he  says  of  Kriisi 
that,  when  he  first  began  to  teach,  ''he  knew  no  art 
of  school-keeping  other  than  that  of  setting  tasks  in 
spelling,  reading,  and  learning  by  heart :  repeating 
lessons  by  turns  :  warning  and  chastising  with  the  rod, 
when  the  tasks  were  not  known  ". 


262  PESTALOZZI. 

It  is  the  first  duty  of  the  teacher,  as  such,  to  be 
interested  and  interesting.  '*  Interest  in  study  is  the 
first  thing  which  a  teacher  .  .  .  should  endeavour  to 
excite  and  keep  aHve.  There  are  scarcely  any  circum- 
stances in  which  a  want  of  application  in  the  children 
does  not  proceed  from  a  want  of  interest ;  and  there  are 
perhaps  none,  under  which  a  want  of  interest  does  not 
originate  in  the  method  of  treatment  adopted  by  the 
teacher.  I  would  go  so  far  as  to  lay  it  down  as  a  rule, 
that  whenever  children  are  inattentive,  and  apparently 
take  no  interest  in  a  lesson,  the  teacher  should  always 
first  look  to  himself  for  the  reason.  .  .  . 

"  There  is  a  most  remarkable  reciprocal  action  be- 
tween the  interest  which  the  teacher  takes,  and  that 
which  he  communicates  to  his  pupils.  If  he  has  not 
his  whole  mind  absorbed  in  the  subject ;  if  he  does  not 
care  whether  it  is  understood  or  not,  whether  his 
manner  is  liked  or  not,  he  will  never  fail  to  alienate 
the  affections  of  his  pupils,  and  render  them  indifferent 
to  what  he  says.  But  real  interest  taken  in  the  task 
of  instruction — kind  words,  and  kinder  feelings — the 
very  expression  of  the  features,  and  the  glance  of  the 
eye — are  never  lost  upon  children  "  {On  Infants  Educa- 
tion). 

Of  general  knowledge,  and  training  for  teaching, 
Pestalozzi  appears  to  think  that  the  teacher — in  the 
broadest  sense  of  the  term — has  little,  if  any,  need,  so 
long  as  he  is  guided  by  those  who  have  the  proper 
qualifications.  The  reasons  for  this  view  are  given  in 
various  parts  of  his  writings  :  of  which  some  typical 
passages  are  here  given. 

'*  Some  of  my  children  developed  so  well  that  I  found 
that  they  were  able  to  do  some  of  the  work  that  I  did. 


teachers'  qualifications.  263 

As  soon  as  we  have  educational  institutions  combined 
with  workshops,  and  conducted  on  truly  psychological 
principles,  we  shall,  I  am  thoroughly  convinced,  inevit- 
ably form  a  generation  which  will  prove  to  us  that  our 
present  studies  require  only  about  a  tenth  of  the  time 
and  trouble  we  now  give  to  them ;  and  that  the  time  and 
trouble  which  will  be  demanded  can  be  made  to  fit  in 
so  entirely  with  the  facts  of  domestic  life,  that  every 
parent  will  be  able  to  give  them,  with  the  aid  of  one 
of  the  family  or  a  friend.  Such  a  state  of  things  will 
daily  become  more  easy,  in  proportion  as  the  method  of 
instruction  is  made  more  simple,  and  the  number  of 
educated  people  increased  "  (Letter  about  Stanz). 

Pestalozzi  says  that  he  convinced  Kriisi  of  "the 
possibility  of  establishing  such  a  method  of  instruc- 
tion as  he  felt  was  most  needed,  viz.,  one  which  would 
cause  all  the  branches  of  knowledge  to  bear  upon  one 
another  with  such  coherence  and  consistency  as  would 
require,  on  the  part  of  the  master,  nothing  but  a 
knowledge  of  the  mode  of  applying  it,  and,  with  that 
knowledge,  would  enable  him  to  obtain  not  only  for  his 
children,  but  even  for  himself,  all  that  is  considered  to 
be  the  object  of  instruction.  That  is  to  say,  he  saw 
that  with  this  method  positive  learning  might  be  dis- 
pensed with,  and  that  nothing  was  wanted  but  sound 
common  sense,  and  practical  ability  in  teaching,  in 
order  not  only  to  lead  the  minds  of  children  to  the 
acquirement  of  solid  information,  but  likewise  to  bring 
parents  and  teachers  to  a  satisfactory  degree  of  inde- 
pendence and  unfettered  mental  activity  concerning 
those  branches  of  knowledge  in  which  they  would 
submit  themselves  to  the  course  prescribed  by  the 
method  "  (How  Gertrude  Teaches). 


264  PESTALOZZI. 

M.  Tobler  says  of  Pestalozzi's  efforts  at  simplifica- 
tion of  method  :  "  In  trying  the  details  of  his  method 
he  never  leaves  any  single  exercise  until  he  has  so  far 
investigated  and  simplified  it,  that  it  seems  impossible 
to  advance  any  farther.  ...  I  became  more  and  more 
convinced  that  it  was  possible  to  accomplish  what  I 
have  before  stated  to  have  been  the  leading  object  of 
my  own  pursuits  at  a  previous  period,  viz.,  to  re- 
educate mothers  for  the  fulfilment  of  that  sacred  task 
assigned  to  them  by  nature,  the  result  of  which  would 
be  that  even  the  first  instruction  imparted  in  schools, 
would  have  previous  maternal  tuition  for  a  foundation 
to  rest  upon.  I  saw  a  practical  method  discovered, 
which,  admitting  of  universal  application,  would  en- 
able parents,  who  have  the  welfare  of  their  children  at 
heart,  to  become  themselves  the  teachers  of  their  Httle 
ones  "  (How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  that  in  a  pamphlet,  published 
in  1778,  describing  his  "  Educational  Establishment  for 
poor  children  at  Neuhof,"  Pestalozzi  says :  **  In  the 
management  of  the  establishment  ...  I  have  ...  a 
man  who  winds  for  the  weavers  and  teaches  reading  at 
at  the  same  time  '*. 

Pestalozzi  wrote,  with  the  aid  of  his  assistants.  The 
Book  for  Mothers  and  his  Elementary  Books,  so  that  parents 
and  others  might  be  enabled  to  carry  on  the  earliest 
education  of  infants.  Shortly  before  the  issue  of  these 
books  (at  Burgdorf),  it  will  be  remembered,  the  School 
Commission  had  reported  that  his  plan  of  instruction 
was  so  simple  and  suitable  that  it  ''  could  be  applied 
during  the  earliest  years  at  which  instruction  could  be 
given  in  the  family  circle :  by  a  mother,  by  a  child  who 
was  a  little  older  than  the  beginner,  or  by  an  intelligent 


teachers'  qualifications.  265 

servant  whilst  doing  her  household  work  ".  But  Pesta- 
lozzi  himself  had  doubts  as  to  the  practical  success  of 
such  books.  In  the  preface  to  The  Book  for  Mothers  he 
writes:  *' I  know  quite  well  what  will  happen:  this 
poor  rind,  which  is  simply  the  outer  form  of  my  method, 
will  seem  to  be  its  real  substance  to  many  men,  who 
will  try  to  fit  in  this  form  with  their  own  narrow  circle 
of  ideas,  and  will  then  judge  of  the  value  of  my  method 
according  to  the  results  which  follow  from  this  strange 
mixture  ". 

M.  Buss  says  of  Pestalozzi's  method:  "The  effect  of 
Pestalozzi's  method  is  to  render  every  individual  intel- 
lectually independent,  by  awakening  and  strengthening 
in  him  the  power  of  advancing  by  himself  in  every 
branch  of  knowledge.  It  seemed  like  a  great  wheel, 
which,  if  once  set  going,  would  continue  to  turn  round 
of  itself.  Nor  did  it  appear  so  to  me  only.  Hundreds 
came,  and  saw,  and  said :  '  Why,  that's  what  I  can  do 
myself  at  home  with  my  child  '.  And  they  were  right. 
The  whole  of  the  method  is  mere  play  for  any  one  who 
has  followed  its  progress  sufficiently  to  be  secured 
against  the  danger  of  straying  into  those  round-about 
paths  which  lead  man  away  from  the  foundation  of 
nature.  .  .  .  Nature  herself  demands  nothing  of  us,  but 
what  is  easy,  provided  we  seek  it  in  the  right  way,  and 
under  her  guidance." 

M.  Fischer,  in  summarising  Pestalozzi's  theory  of 
education,  gave  as  one  of  the  ways  in  which  it  sought 
to  simplify  the  mechanism  of  instruction:  ''The  book 
is  to  replace  the  teacher  ".  Pestalozzi  in  commenting 
on  this  statement  says  that  he  considers  this  essential ; 
for,  he  believes,  there  can  be  no  real  advance  until 
forms  of  instruction  have  been  found,  such  that  the 


266  PESTALOZZI. 

teacher  will  be,  at  least  for  all  elementary  knowledge, 
the  mere  mechanical  tool  of  a  method :  the  results  of 
which  will  inevitably  arise  from  the  method  itself  and 
not  from  the  ability  of  the  man  who  uses  it.  A  text- 
book is  only  good  in  so  far  as  an  uninstructed  school- 
master can  use  it,  at  any  rate  as  far  as  absolute  needs 
are  concerned,  almost  as  well  as  an  educated  and  able 
teacher.  The  ignorant  man  and  the  mother  must  find 
in  it  sufficient  guidance  and  help  to  enable  him  and 
her  always  to  be  a  little  in  advance  of  the  child,  in  re- 
lation to  that  to  which  they  are  to  lead  it. 

Other  extracts  from  How  Gertrude  Teaches  will  show 
how  firmly  Pestalozzi  held  to  the  view  that  any  one 
can  teach,  if  he  will  only  follow  a  plan  laid  down  for 
him  by  one  who  has  got  to  the  roots  of  the  matter :  "  If 
I  could  do  fully  what  I  try  to  do,  it  is  only  necessary 
for  me  to  explain  it,  to  enable  the  simplest  man  to  do 
it  afterwards.  .  .  .  Whatever  he  picks  up  from  his  text- 
books, and  wishes  to  teach  the  children,  should  be  so 
simple  that  every  mother,  and  later  every  teacher,  even 
those  with  the  slightest  ability  for  instruction,  can  follow, 
repeat,  explain,  and  combine  into  a  whole.  ...  I  saw 
a  universal  psychological  method  developed,  by  which 
all  parents  who  were  inclined  to  do  so,  might  be  put  in 
a  position  to  instruct  their  own  children,  and  thereby 
obviate  the  supposed  need  of  training  teachers,  for  a 
long  period,  in  expensive  institutions  and  by  educational 
libraries." 

Simultaneous  Oral  Work.  Pestalozzi's  own  view  of 
this  is  clear  and  definite.  He  began  it  at  Stanz ;  when, 
without  any  experience,  training,  or  skill  in  the  art  of 
teaching,  he  first  dealt  with  a  group  of  children  under 
school  conditions.     He  says:  "I  stood  in  the  midst  of 


SIMULTANEOUS   WORKS.  267 

these  children,  pronouncing  various  sounds  and  asking 
them  to  imitate  me ;  whoever  saw  it  was  struck  with 
the  effect.  It  is  true  it  was  a  meteor  which  vanishes  in 
the  air  as  soon  as  it  appears.  No  one  understood  its 
nature.  I  did  not  understand  it  myself.  It  was  the 
result  of  a  simple  feeling,  or  rather  of  a  fact  of  human 
nature  which  was  revealed  to  my  feelings,  but  of  which 
I  was  far  from  having  a  clear  consciousness  "  (Letter 
about  Stanz).  This  seems  to  imply  that — however 
ignorant  and  unprepared — the  immediate  reaction  of 
the  mind,  to  thre  influence  of  a  set  of  difficult  circum- 
stances demanding  instant  solution,  is  likely  to  be 
fundamentally  right. 

He  again  refers,  in  How  Gertrude  Teaches,  to  his  ex- 
periences at  Stanz,  and  says :  "  Being  obliged  to  instruct 
the  children  by  myself,  without  any  assistance,  I  learned 
the  art  of  teaching  a  great  number  together ;  and  as  I 
had  no  other  means  of  bringing  the  instruction  before 
them,  than  that  of  pronouncing  everything  to  them 
loudly  and  distinctly,  I  was  naturally  led  to  the  idea  of 
making  them  draw,  write,  or  work,  at  the  same  time. 
The  confusion  of  so  many  voices,  repeating  my  words, 
suggested  the  necessity  of  keeping  time  in  our  exercises, 
and  I  soon  found  that  this  contributed  materially  to 
make  their  impressions  stronger  and  more  distinct." 

In  his  Guide  for  Teaching  Spelling  and  Readings  he 
says:  ''A  great  advantage  is  to  be  gained  for  the  in- 
struction of  a  large  number  of  children  in  public  schools, 
by  accustoming  them,  from  the  very  beginning,  to  pro- 
nounce simultaneously  whatsoever  sound  may  have 
been  repeated  or  pointed  out  to  them  by  the  teachers, 
so  that  all  their  voices  together  shall  produce  but  one 
sound.     By  doing  this  in  a  stated  measure  [i.e.^  sing- 


268  PESTALOZZI. 

song],  a  large  class  is  carried  on  with  the  same  ease  as 
a  single  pupil,  and  the  effect  produced  upon  the  senses 
of  the  children  is  far  more  powerful." 

At  the  same  time  Pestalozzi  appears  to  have  had  in 
mind  a  definite  limitation  of  such  work.  In  speaking  of 
Kriisi's  learning  of  his  theories  and  methods,  at  Burg- 
dorf,  he  says:  "The  sentences,  descriptive  of  walking, 
standing,  lying,  singing,  etc.,  which  I  gave  the  children 
to  learn,  led  Kriisi  to  see  the  connection  between  the 
beginnings  of  my  instruction  and  the  purpose  at  which 
I  was  aiming,  viz.^  to  produce  a  general  clearness  in 
the  mind  on  all  subjects.  He  soon  felt  that  if  the 
children  are  made  to  describe  in  this  manner  things 
which  are  so  clear  to  them  that  experience  cannot 
render  them  any  clearer,  they  must  thereby  be  checked 
in  the  presumption  of  describing  things  of  which  they 
have  no  knowledge ;  and  at  the  same  time  they  must 
acquire  the  power  of  describing  whatever  they  do  know, 
to  a  degree  which  will  enable  them  to  give  concise, 
definite  and  comprehensive  descriptions  of  whatever 
falls  under  their  observation  "  {How  Gertrude  Teaches). 

M.  Soyaux  refers  to  the  simultaneous  method  in  his 
account  of  his  visit  to  Yverdon.  He  says  :  *'  They  do 
not  answer  one  at  a  time,  according  as  they  are  able  or 
not,  but  all  who  can  answer  call  out  together.  This 
may  have  its  advantages ;  but  the  shouting,  in  which 
the  children  take  great  delight,  ought  not  to  be  per- 
mitted. I  have  sometimes  actually  been  driven  out  of 
the  room  by  the  deafening  noise  which  was  made  when 
several  classes  recited  at  the  same  time.  The  severe 
exhaustion  which  follows  is  certainly  not  good  for  the 
voice :  the  ear  gets  used  to  loud  noises,  and  in  the  end 
the  boy  gets  into  the  habit  of  shouting  at  all  times." 


PUPILS  AS  TETACHERS.  269 

Mutual  Instruction.  From  the  very  first  Pestalozzi 
appears  to  have  believed  in  the  instruction  of  children 
by  children,  although  he  seems  very  clearly  to  realise 
that  limitations  are  necessary.  Thus,  in  speaking  of 
Gertrude's  children,  he  says:  "All  that  they  learnt 
they  knew  so  thoroughly  that  they  were  able  to  teach 
it  to  others ;  and  they  often  asked  to  be  allowed  to 
teach  younger  children — this  they  were  allowed  to  do. 
Thus  one  would  see  a  boy  with  each  arm  around  the 
neck  of  a  smaller  boy,  while  he  made  them  say,  after 
him,  the  syllables  from  the  ABC  book ;  or  a  girl  would 
place  herself  and  her  wheel  between  two  of  the  younger 
girls  and  teach  them,  with  the  greatest  patience,  the 
words  of  a  hymn  "  (Leonard  and  Gertrude). 

When  he  was  at  Stanz,  he  put  into  practice  his  plan 
of  mutual  instruction.  ''  The  number  and  inequality 
of  my  children  rendered  my  task  easier.  Just  as  in  a 
family  the  eldest  and  cleverest  child  readily  shows  what 
he  knows  to  his  younger  brothers  and  sisters,  and  feels 
proud  and  happy  to  be  able  to  take  his  mother's  place 
for  a  moment,  so  my  children  were  delighted  when  they 
knew  something  they  could  teach  others.  A  sentiment 
of  honour  awoke  in  them,  and  they  learned  twice  as 
well  by  making  the  younger  ones  repeat  their  work. 
In  this  way  I  soon  had  helpers  and  collaborators 
amongst  the  children  themselves. 

"  When  I  was  teaching  them  to  spell  difficult  words  by 
heart,  I  used  to  allow  any  child  who  succeeded  in  say- 
ing one  properly  to  teach  it  to  the  others.  These  child- 
helpers,  whom  I  had  formed  from  the  very  outset,  and 
who  had  followed  my  method  step  by  step,  were  certainly 
much  more  useful  to  me  than  any  regular  schoolmaster 
could  have  been.    I  myself  learned  with  the  children,  .  ,  , 


2/0  PESTALOZZI. 

"Children  became  the  teachers  of  children.  They 
endeavoured  to  carry  into  effect  what  I  proposed,  and 
in  doing  so  they  themselves  frequently  traced  the  means 
of  execution.  ...  To  this  also  I  was  brought  chiefly  by 
necessity.  Seeing  that  I  had  no  assistant-teachers,  I 
placed  a  child  of  superior  capacities  between  two  of 
inferior  powers.  He  threw  his  arms  round  their  necks  ; 
he  taught  them  what  he  knew,  and  they  learned  from 
him  what  they  knew  not.  They  sat  by  the  side  of  each 
other  with  heart-felt  affection.  Joy  and  love  animated 
their  souls ;  the  life  which  was  awakened  within  them, 
and  which  had  taken  hold  of  their  minds,  carried  both 
teachers  and  learners  forward  with  a  rapidity  and  cheer- 
fulness which  this  process  of  mutual  enlivening  alone 
could  produce."  Pestalozzi  had  expected  to  have  proper 
assistants.  In  a  letter  to  Dr.  Rengger  he  writes :  "I 
am  waiting  impatiently  for  letters  from  Zurich  on  the 
subject  of  the  assistants  of  both  sexes  of  whom  I  stand 
in  need  ". 

Staff  Conferences,  etc.  In  the  report  by  the  Com- 
missioners who  inspected  the  institute  at  Yverdon  an 
account  is  given  of  its  government.  "  Each  depart- 
ment of  instruction  has  a  certain  number  of  professors, 
every  one  of  whom  takes  a  certain  part  of  the  work,  and 
takes  up  the  thread  where  his  predecessor  dropped  it. 
These  professors  form  a  special  committee,  which  meets 
once  a  week  for  an  interchange  of  experiences  and 
opinions  which  have  resulted  from  their  teaching,  so 
that  all  may  benefit  thereby,  and  the  teaching  as  a 
whole  profit.  Besides  the  teaching  department  there 
are  two  others :  one  for  discipline  and  the  other  for 
religion.  The  masters  in  charge  of  the  one  collect 
the  reports  of  the  masters  who  have  done  supervision 


STAFF  CONFERENCES.  2^1 

duty,  and  decide  on  the  question  of  the  breaking  of 
rules.  The  masters  responsible  for  the  other,  which  is 
considered  higher  and  more  important,  watch  over  the 
moral  and  religious  conduct  of  the  pupils;  and  they 
take  into  consideration  the  characters  of  the  pupils, 
their  vices  and  bad  habits,  and  the  means  to  prevent  or 
remove  these. 

**  Pestalozzi  is  present  at  the  meetings  of  these  com- 
mittees, and  is  the  guiding  spirit  and  soul  of  them.  At 
the  end  of  each  week  there  is  a  joint  meeting,  the  reso- 
lutions of  which  have  the  force  of  law.  There  is  no 
respect  of  persons  at  these  meetings :  each  one  has  the 
influence  which  his  knowledge,  work,  and  the  confidence 
with  which  he  inspires  his  colleagues,  gives  him.  Who- 
ever has  anything  to  bring  forward,  has  the  right  to  be 
heard.  The  head  himself  is  so  little  jealous  of  the  pre- 
dominance which  is  due  to  him  by  right  of  his  char- 
acter, age  and  fame,  that  on  ceremonious  occasions,  if 
he  takes  part  in  them  at  all,  he  deputes  to  one  of  his 
friends  the  duty  of  presiding  over  the  assembly. 

''The  Board  of  Management  has  an  office,  the 
members  of  which  have  a  heavy  task.  The  work  is 
twofold :  one  part  literary  and  scientific ;  the  other  cler- 
ical, i.e.f  the  correspondence  with  pupils'  parents.  The 
latter  keeps  registers,  in  which  detailed  reports  of  the 
progress  and  character  of  each  child  are  recorded,  and 
extracts  from  these  are  afterwards  sent  home  to  the 
children's  families.  The  literary  side  corresponds  with 
foreign  teachers  and  the  public:  edits  the  periodicals 
which  are  printed  in  Switzerland  and  Germany,  and 
inserts  articles  in  learned  reviews.  Pestalozzi  presides 
over  this  extensive  work  and  shares  with  his  colleague^ 
a  task  which  he  could  not  manage  alone/' 


272  PESTALOZZI. 

Dr.  Biber  also  gives  us  an  account  of  the  staff  con- 
ferences. He  says :  ''  Every  teacher  in  his  turn  was 
called  upon  to  give  an  account  of  the  manner  in  which 
he  proceeded  in  his  lessons,  and  of  the  children  who 
were  placed  under  his  instruction,  or  his  superintend- 
ence. He  was  encouraged  in  freely  communicating  his 
observations,  stating  his  difficulties,  and  offering  his 
suggestions ;  he  had  to  expect  from  Pestalozzi  and 
from  his  brother  teachers  nothing  but  cordial  assent 
when  he  was  in  the  right,  and  kind  advice,  or  gentle 
reproof,  when  he  was  in  the  wrong.  It  was  in  these 
assemblies  that  the  younger  teachers  learned,  by  the 
manner  in  which  they  themselves  were  treated  by  the 
elder  members  of  the  establishment,  the  difficult  art  of 
living  on  an  equality  with  those  that  were  in  a  certain 
sense  their  inferiors,  without  descending  to  a  level  with 
them,  and  of  admitting  them  to  a  familiarity  which 
bred  no  contempt. 

"  The  remarks  of  each,  together  with  the  resolutions 
to  which  they  led,  were  put  down  in  a  minute-book, 
which,  while  it  formed  the  basis  of  an  open  and  candid 
correspondence  with  the  parents,  served  as  a  useful 
reference  for  any  teacher  who  might  wish  for  informa- 
tion on  some  particular  branch  of  the  method,  or  con- 
cerning some  one  or  other  of  the  pupils.  The  effect  of 
these  constant  communications  on  every  subject  con- 
nected with  their  daily  duties,  could  be  no  other  than 
to  produce  a  kind  of  unity  of  feeling,  of  thought  and 
action  among  all  the  teachers  of  the  establishment. 
They  were  not  left  to  first  impressions,  to  erroneous 
and  prejudiced  views ;  they  could  not  for  any  length  of 
time  overrate  or  underrate  the  abilities,  acquirements, 
or  moral  deserts  of  any  of  the  children, 


STAFF  CONFERENCES.  273 

''The  experience  of  one  man  threw  light  upon  that 
of  the  other ;  one  trait,  one  fact,  explained  the  other  ; 
and  much  of  the  injustice  of  which  a  single  teacher  will 
often,  though  ever  so  unwillingly,  become  guilty,  was 
prevented  by  the  full  picture  which  was  drawn,  by  all 
in  common,  of  the  state  of  mind  of  each  pupil ;  not  to 
mention  the  rich  store  of  general  knowledge  of  human 
nature,  which  these  conversations  must  have  been  the 
means  of  eliciting  from,  and  impressing  upon,  the 
minds  of  all  present. 

"  Another  assembly  of  the  teachers  took  place  on 
Saturday  evenings,  for  the  purpose  of  collecting  what- 
ever observations  might  have  been  made  by  each,  indi- 
vidually, during  the  course  of  the  week,  on  matters  of 
general  discipline,  order,  etc.  Defects  in  the  manage- 
ment of  the  house,  mistakes  on  the  parts  of  teachers, 
and  misdemeanours  on  the  parts  of  pupils,  were  here 
brought  under  discussion.  The  result  of  these  delibera- 
tions, likewise,  were  put  on  record,  and  in  a  general 
assembly  of  teachers  and  pupils,  held  on  Sunday  even- 
ings, such  points  as  referred  to  the  past  or  future  con- 
duct of  the  latter,  were  introduced,  and  their  attention 
directed  towards  the  means  of  remedying  existing  evils, 
or  of  attaining  any  object  that  was  found  desirable. 

"  On  all  these  occasions  Pestalozzi's  personal  presence 
imparted  life  and  interest  to  the  whole ;  while  such 
subjects  as  were  not  fit  for  public  discussion,  were 
settled  by  him  in  private  interviews  with  the  parties 
concerned.  Every  teacher  had  at  all  times  free  access 
to  him,  and  he  made  a  point  of  conferring  with  each  of 
them  separately  from  time  to  time,  on  the  duties  which 
devolved  upon  him,  and  the  impediments  by  which  his 
progress  might  be  obstructed." 

18 


274  PESTALOZZI. 

Time=TabIe.  At  Burgdorf  there  was  considerable 
freedom  as  to  times  and  lessons,  though  there  seems 
also  to  have  been  a  standing  arrangement  which  was 
observed  unless  the  teacher  felt  inclined  to  do  otherwise. 
That  there  was  a  definite  time-table  at  Yverdon  appears 
certain  from  the  fact  that  Froebel  in  the  account  of  his 
visit  says:  ''I  saw  the  whole  training  of  a  great  edu- 
cational institution,  work  upon  a  clear  and  firmly  settled 
plan  of  teaching.  I  still  possess  the  '  teaching-plan  '  of 
Pestalozzi's  institution  in  use  at  that  time. 

''This  teaching-plan  contains,  in  my  opinion,  much 
that  is  excellent.  .  .  .  Excellent,  I  thought,  was  the  con- 
trivance of  the  so-called  '  circulating  classes '  [wandernde 
classen].  In  each  subject  the  instruction  was  always 
taken  at  the  same  time  throughout  the  entire  establish- 
ment. Thus  the  subject  for  teaching  was  fixed  for 
every  class ;  but  the  pupils  were  scattered  amongst  the 
different  classes  according  to  their  proficiency  in  the 
subject  being  taught,  so  that  the  entire  school  was 
redistributed  in  quite  a  distinct  rearrangement  for  each 
subject. 

''The  advantage  of  this  contrivance  struck  me  as 
so  obvious  and  so  efficient  that  I  have  never  since  de- 
parted from  it  in  my  educational  work,  nor  could  I  now 
bring  myself  to  do  so." 

The  hours  for  lessons,  at  Yverdon,  were  (i)  from 
6  till  7 ;  (2)  8  till  I2  ;  (3)  1.30  till  4.30 ;  and  (4)  6  till  8. 
Five  to  seven  minutes  for  recreation  were  allowed  be- 
tween every  two  hours,  in  the  morning  (8  till  12).  The 
longer  intervals  for  recreation  were  from  12  till  i,  and 
from  4.30  till  5  (when  fruit  and  bread  were  distributed). 

School  Punishments.  In  Leonard  and  Gertrude  it  is 
urged  that  strict  order  and  punctuality  must  be  observed 


PUNISHMENTS.  2/5 

in  school,  for  this  would  train  for  life.  School  must  be^in 
on  the  stroke  of  the  clock,  and  no  one  must  be  allowed 
to  come  late.  The  children  must  come  clean  in  person 
and  clothing,  and  with  their  hair  combed.  The  body 
must  be  kept  erect  when  the  child  is  standing,  sitting, 
writing  or  working  (spinning,  etc.).  The  schoolroom 
must  be  perfectly  clean :  no  broken  windows :  and  no 
nails  driven  crookedly  into  the  floor.  Nothing  must  be 
thrown  upon  the  floor :  children  must  not  eat  during 
lessons :  in  getting  up  and  sitting  down  they  must  not 
push  against  each  other. 

At  the  close  of  school  those  children  who  had  done 
well  during  the  day  went  up  to  the  master  and  said  : 
"  God  be  with  you !  "  He  held  out  his  hand  and 
replied:  "God  be  with  you,  my  dear  child!"  Next 
went  those  who  had  only  done  fairly  well,  and  to  these 
he  said  only:  "God  be  with  you!"  without  giving 
them  his  hand.  Those  who  had  done  badly  had  to 
leave  the  room  without  going  up  to  the  master,  or  re- 
ceiving a  word  of  farewell  from  him.  Punishments 
were  made  to  fit  the  crime:  an  idle  child  had  to  cut 
fire-wood,  etc. ;  a  forgetful  child  had  to  be  messenger 
for  several  days ;  disobedient  and  impertinent  children 
were  not  spoken  to  in  public,  for  a  number  of  days,  but 
only  in  private  after  school ;  wickedness  and  lying  were 
punished  by  the  rod,  and  the  culprit's  name  was  entered 
in  a  special  book,  and  not  erased  until  real  amendment 
had  been  shown.  The  master  treated  the  children, 
otherwise,  with  all  kindness  :  talked  with  them  more 
than  at  any  other  time :  and  tried  to  help  them  to  over- 
come their  failings. 

While  it  was  necessary  to  be  very  strict,  love  should 
thus  be  used  in  conjunction  with  fear,  for  only  so  would 

i8* 


276  PESTALOZZI. 

pvipils  learn  to  root  out  evil  habits — which  they  never 
do  of  their  own  accord,  but  only  under  compulsion,  and 
because  of  good  training. 

Among  other  ways  of  getting  order  this  was  used: 
"  Silence,  as  an  aid  to  application,  is  perhaps  the 
great  secret  of  such  an  institution  [at  Stanz].  I 
found  it  very  useful  to  insist  on  silence  when  I  was 
teaching,  and  also  to  pay  particular  attention  to  the 
attitude  of  my  children.  The  result  was  that  the 
moment  I  asked  for  silence,  I  could  teach  in  quite  a 
low  voice.  The  children  repeated  my  words  alto- 
gether ;  and  as  there  was  no  other  sound,  I  was  able 
to  detect  the  slightest  mistakes  of  pronunciation.  It 
is  true  that  this  was  not  always  so.  Sometimes,  whilst 
they  repeated  sentences  after  me,  I  would  ask  them, 
half  in  fun,  to  keep  their  eyes  fixed  on  their  middle 
fingers.  It  is  hardly  credible  how  useful  simple  things 
of  this  sort  sometimes  are  as  means  to  the  very  highest 
ends.  .  .  . 

"  When  the  children  were  obdurate  and  churlish,  then 
I  was  severe,  and  made  use  of  corporal  punishment. 
.  .  .  My  punishments  never  produced  obstinacy;  the 
children  I  had  beaten  were  quite  satisfied  if  a  moment 
afterwards  I  gave  them  my  hand  and  kissed  them,  and 
I  could  read  in  their  eyes  that  the  final  effect  of  my 
blows  was  really  joy.  The  following  is  a  striking 
example  of  the  effect  this  sort  of  punishment  sometimes 
had.  One  day  one  of  the  children  I  liked  best,  taking 
advantage  of  my  affection,  unjustly  threatened  one  of 
his  companions.  I  was  very  indignant,  and  my  hand 
did  not  spare  him.  He  seemed  at  first  almost  broken- 
hearted, and  cried  bitterly  for  at  least  a  quarter  of  an 
hour.     When  I  had  gone  out,  however,  he  got  up,  and 


PUNISHMENTS.  277 

going  to  the  boy  he  had  ill-treated,  begged  his  pardon, 
and  thanked  him  for  having  spoken  about  his  bad  con- 
duct. This  was  no  comedy;  the  child  had  never  seen 
anything  like  it  before.  .  .  . 

"  I  knew  no  other  order,  method,  or  art,  but  that 
which  resulted  naturally  from  my  children's  conviction 
of  my  love  for  them,  nor  did  I  care  to  know  any  other. 
Thus  I  subordinated  the  instruction  of  my  children  to  a 
higher  aim,  which  was  to  arouse  and  strengthen  their 
best  sentiments  by  the  relations  of  every-day  life  as  they 
existed  between  themselves  and  me." 

Pestalozzi's  views  on  corporal  punishment  were  very 
clear  and  definite.  In  his  On  the.  Idea  of  Elementary 
Education  he  lays  it  down  that  it  is  quite  a  mistake  to 
suppose  that  we  can  overcome  the  desires  of  the  flesh 
by  simply  talking  to  children.  Neither  are  we  likely  to 
be  able  always  to  bend  the  child's  will  to  our  own  view 
of  what  is  best  by  mere  words.  Corporal  punishment 
will,  in  the  last  resource,  be  found  to  be  necessary.  It 
is  much  more  likely  to  be  our  weakness  than  our  sense 
of  delicacy  which  persuades  us  that  it  is  coarse  and  re- 
pulsive to  use  blows.  If  we  had  confidence  in  our  judg- 
ment of  what  was  necessary  and  right,  and  in  our  love 
for  the  child  in  deciding  this,  we  should  not  hesitate. 
Because  we  cannot  trust  our  love  for  the  child,  or  the 
child's  confidence  in  our  love  for  him,  when  we  use 
severe  measures  for  his  good,  we  think  that  our  motives 
will  be  misunderstood.  It  requires  a  real  strength  of 
affection  to  chastise  in  love:  it  is  weakness  of  love 
which  causes  us  to  shrink  from  needful  severity. 

In  the  same  work,  and  when  discussing  the  question 
of  religious  training,  he  says  that  it  is  good  for  the 
child,  even  at  an  early  age,  to  fear  eternal  punishment 


278  PESTALOZZI. 

as  he  fears  his  mother's  rod ;  and  this  so  that  the  fear 
of  the  lesser  evil  may  help  to  save  him  from  the  greater. 
He  uses  this  parable  in  support  of  his  viev^:  *' If  the 
mother  sees  her  child  on  the  banks  of  a  stream,  across 
vy^hich  there  is  a  dangerous  plank,  she  says :  *  Do  not 
cross  ! '  Should  he  try  to  cross,  and  thus  be  in  danger 
of  drowning,  she  rushes  to  the  treacherous  plank  and, 
pale  and  trembling,  snatches  him  from  peril.  Again 
she  warns  him,  with  urgent  emphasis :  *  Do  not  go  on 
the  plank,  for  you  may  drown  yourself! '  When  she 
gets  him  in  doors  she  shows  him  the  rod,  saying,  '  If  you 
go  there  again,  I  shall  whip  you ! '  If,  nevertheless,  he 
does  again  try  to  cross  the  plank,  she  whips  him ;  and 
then  he  never  again  ventures  there,  but  still  he  loves 
his  mother  as  before." 

In  Leonard  and  Gertrude  a  mother  thus  speaks  to  her 
child  who  has  been  gossiping,  after  repeated  warnings 
not  to  do  it :  '* '  You  have  been  told,  once  for  all,  that 
you  are  not  to  talk  of  anything  that  is  no  business  of 
yours ;  but  it  is  all  in  vain.  There  is  no  getting  you 
out  of  this  habit,  except  by  severe  means ;  and  the  very 
first  time  that  I  catch  you  again  in  any  such  idle  gossip, 
I  shall  take  to  the  rod.' 

"  The  tears  burst  from  poor  Betty's  eyes  when  her 
mother  mentioned  the  rod.  The  mother  saw  it  and 
said  to  her :  *  The  greatest  mischief,  Betty,  often  arises 
out  of  idle  gossip,  and  you  must  be  cured  of  that  fault '." 

A  want  of  thoroughness  and  carefulness  in  work,  so 
far  as  the  child  was  really  capable  of  these,  was  regarded 
as  a  fault  to  be  cured.  "  I  always  made  the  children 
learn  perfectly  even  the  least  important  things,  and  I 
never  allowed  them  to  lose  ground  ;  a  word  once  learnt, 
for  instance,  was  never  to  be  forgotten,  and  a  letter 


PUNISHMENTS.  279 

once  well  written  never  to  be  written  badly  again.  I 
was  very  patient  with  all  who  were  weak  and  slow,  but 
very  severe  with  those  who  did  anything  less  well  than 
they  had  done  it  before." 

Ramsauer,  describing  his  own  experiences  as  a  pupil 
at  the  institution  in  Burgdorf,  says :  "  Although  Pesta- 
lozzi  at  all  times  strictly  prohibited  his  assistants  from 
using  any  kind  of  corporal  punishment,  yet  he  by  no 
means  dispensed  with  it  himself,  but  very  often  dealt  out 
boxes  on  the  ears  right  and  left.  But  most  of  the  scholars 
rendered  his  life  very  unhappy ;  so  much  so  that  I  felt 
a  real  sympathy  for  him,  and  kept  myself  all  the  more 
quiet." 

M.  Soyaux,  of  Berlin,  who  visited  the  institute  at 
Yverdon,  says  :  *'  As  to  discipline,  the  guiding  principle 
is  to  allow  the  greatest  possible  liberty  to  the  children, 
only  trying  to  prevent  abuses.  In  no  case  does  the 
restrictive  side  of  a  rule  predominate.  Masters  and 
pupils  are  as  easy  and  natural  in  their  manner  as  the 
lonely  mountain-dwellers.  They  know  nothing  of  the 
refinements  of  polite  society,  of  polished  phrases,  or 
of  high  etiquette.  .  .  .  While,  however,  enjoying  com- 
plete liberty  they  keep  within  certain  reasonable  limits ; 
obstinacy,  bullying,  quarrelsomeness,  etc.,  are  extremely 
unusual  among  them.  .  .  .  The  masters  never  think  of 
enforcing  their  authority  by  commands  or  reproofs.  .  .  . 

"  The  children  are,  indeed,  under  too  little  restraint. 
There  are,  in  effect,  hardly  any  rules  at  all.  During 
lessons  they  sit  or  stand  as  they  feel  inclined,  and 
wherever  they  choose.  .  .  .  Naturally,  owing  to  their 
youthful  vivacity,  they  are  more  like  a  mob  of  people 
pushing  and  shoving  to  get  the  best  places  rather  than 
a   class   of  pupils  who  desire  to  learn,  among  whom 


28o  PESTALOZZI. 

there  should  be  proper  order,  if  such  an  end  is  to  be 
gained." 

De  Guimps  tells  us  that :  "  Three  times  a  week  the 
masters  rendered  an  account  to  Pestalozzi  of  the  pupils' 
work  and  behaviour.  The  latter  were  summoned  by 
the  old  man,  five  or  six  at  a  time,  to  receive  his  exhor- 
tations or  remonstrances.  He  would  take  them  one  by 
one  into  a  corner  of  his  room,  and  ask  them  in  a  low 
voice  if  they  had  something  to  tell  him,  or  to  ask  him. 
He  tried  in  this  way  to  gain  their  confidence,  to  find 
out  if  they  were  happy,  what  pleased  them,  or  what 
troubled  them." 

Pestalozzi  trained  his  pupils,  as  far  as  was  possible, 
in  methods  of  self-government.  He  says:  *'  I  appealed 
to  them  in  all  matters  that  concerned  the  establishment. 
It  was  generally  in  the  quiet  evening  hours  that  I  ap- 
pealed to  their  free  judgment.  When,  for  example,  it 
was  reported  in  the  village  that  they  had  not  enough  to. 
eat,  I  said  to  them,  *  Tell  me,  my  children,  if  you  are 
not  better  fed  than  you  were  at  home  ?  .  .  .  Do  you 
lack  anything  that  is  really  necessary  ?  Do  you  think 
I  could  reasonably  and  justly  do  more  for  you  ? '  .  .  . 
In  the  same  way,  when  I  heard  that  it  was  reported 
that  I  punished  them  too  severely,  I  said  to  them  : 
*  You  know  how  I  love  you,  my  children ;  but  tell  me, 
would  you  like  me  to  stop  punishing  you  ?  Do  you 
think  that  in  any  other  way  I  can  free  you  from  your 
deeply  rooted  bad  habits,  or  make  you  always  mind 
what  I  say  ? '  You  were  there,  my  friend  [Gessner],  and 
saw  with  you  own  eyes  the  sincere  emotion  with  which 
they  answered,  *  We  do  not  complain  of  your  treatment. 
Would  that  we  never  deserved  punishment;  but  when 
we  do,  we  are  willing  to  bear  it.'  .  .  . 


PUNISHMENTS.  281 

"  I  shall  never  forget  the  impression  that  my  words 
produced,  when  in  speaking  of  a  certain  disturbance 
that  had  taken  place  amongst  them,  I  said,  '  My 
children,  it  is  the  same  with  us  as  with  every  other 
household ;  when  the  children  are  numerous,  and  each 
gives  way  to  his  bad  habits,  such  disorder  follows  that 
even  the  weakest  mother  is  obliged  to  be  reasonable, 
and  make  them  submit  to  what  is  just  and  right.  And 
that  is  what  I  must  do  now.  If  you  do  not  willingly 
assist  in  the  maintenance  of  order,  our  establishment 
cannot  go  on,  you  will  fall  back  into  your  former  con- 
dition, and  your  misery — now  that  you  have  been  ac- 
customed to  a  good  home,  clean  clothes,  and  regular 
food — will  be  greater  than  ever." 

But  Pestalozzi  was  not  less  clear  and  definite  in  the 
conviction  that  to  do  without  corporal  punishment  is 
the  better  way,  and  the  end  for  which  to  strive.  In 
his  letter  about  Stanz  he  says:  "  The  pedagogical  prin- 
ciple which  says  we  must  win  the  hearts  and  minds  of 
our  children  by  words  alone  without  having  recourse 
to  corporal  punishment,  is  undoubtedly  good,  and  to  be 
applied  under  favourable  conditions  and  circumstances. 
But  with  children  with  such  widely  different  ages  as 
mine ;  children  for  the  most  part  beggars ;  and  all  full 
of  deeply  rooted  faults ;  a  certain  amount  of  corporal 
punishment  was  inevitable,  especially  as  I  was  anxious 
to  arrive  surely,  quickly,  and  by  the  simplest  means,  at 
obtaining  an  influence  over  them  all,  to  the  end  that  I 
might  put  them  all  on  the  right  road. 

'*  I  was  compelled  to  punish  them,  but  it  would  be  a 
mistake  to  suppose  that  I  thereby,  in  any  way,  lost  the 
confidence  of  my  pupils.  It  is  not  the  rare  and  isolated 
actions  that  form  the  opinions  and  feelings  of  children, 


282  PESTALOZZI. 

but  the  impressions  of  every  day  and  every  hour.  From 
such  impressions  they  judge  w^hether  we  are  kindly 
disposed  to  them  or  not,  and  this  decides  their  general 
attitude  tow^ards  us." 

Again  he  writes  :  "  I  have  urged  the  supreme  char- 
acter of  the  motive  of  sympathy  as  the  one  that  should 
early,  and  indeed  principally,  be  employed  in  the 
management  of  children  "  (On  Infants   Education). 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

PESTALOZZI  AS  A  PRACTICAL  TEACHER. 

To  know  something  about  the  manner  in  which  Pesta- 
lozzi  himself  taught  is,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  a  very 
interesting  matter  to  those  who  understand  and  believe 
in  his  great  educational  principles.  But  we  must  not 
expect  to  find  in  him  the  perfect  pedagogue  any  more 
than  the  perfect  pedagogist.  M.  Fischer,  who  knew 
him  well,  and  loved  him,  said :  "  Pestalozzi  under- 
stands that  he  is  lacking  in  much  positive  knowledge 
and  in  practical  skill  in  using  his  machinery  ". 

First  let  us  note  Pestalozzi's  own  accounts  of  his 
actual  work  as  a  practical  teacher.  Writing  of  his  work 
in  the  orphan-school  at  Stanz,  he  says  :  "  I  had  Gedicke's 
reading-book,  but  it  was  of  no  more  use  to  me  than  any 
other  school-book ;  for  I  felt  that,  with  all  these  children 
of  such  different  ages,  I  had  an  admirable  opportunity 
for  carrying  out  my  own  views  on  early  education.  I 
was  well  aware,  too,  how  impossible  it  would  be  to 
organise  my  teaching  according  to  the  ordinary  system 
in  use  in  the  best  schools.  As  a  general  rule  I  attached 
little  importance  to  the  study  of  words,  even  when  ex- 
planations of  the  ideas  they  represented  were  given. 
I  tried  to  connect  study  with  manual  labour,  the  school 
with  the  workshop,  and  make  one  thing  of  them.     But 

I  was  the  less  able  to  do  this  as  staff,  material  and 

283 


284  PESTALOZZI. 

tools  were  all  wanting.  A  short  time  only  before  the 
close  of  the  establishment,  a  few  children  had  begun  to 
spin ;  and  I  saw  clearly  that,  before  any  fusion  could 
be  effected,  the  two  parts  must  be  firmly  established 
separately — study,  that  is,  on  the  one  hand,  and  labour 
on  the  other.  .  .  . 

*'  I  made  them  spell  by  heart  before  teaching  them 
their  ABC,  and  the  whole  class  could  thus  spell  the 
hardest  words  without  knowing  their  letters.  It  will 
be  evident  to  everybody  how  great  a  call  this  made  on 
their  attention.  I  followed  at  first  the  order  of  words 
in  Gedicke's  book,  but  I  soon  found  it  more  useful  to 
join  the  five  vowels  successively  to  the  different  con- 
sonants, and  so  form  a  well-graduated  series  of  syllables 
leading  from  the  simple  to  the  compound.  I  had  gone 
rapidly  through  the  scraps  of  geography  and  natural 
history  in  Gedicke's  book.  Before  knowing  their  letters 
even,  they  could  say  properly  the  names  of  the  different 
countries.  In  natural  history  they  were  very  quick  in 
corroborating  what  I  taught  them  by  their  own  personal 
observations  on  plants  and  animals." 

In  describing  his  experiences  at  Burgdorf,  he  gives 
us  a  still  farther  insight  into  his  practical  methods.  He 
writes:  "I  once  more  began  crying  my  ABC  from 
morning  till  night,  following  without  any  plan  the  em- 
pirical method  interrupted  at  Stanz.  I  was  indefatig- 
able in  putting  syllables  together  and  arranging  them  in 
a  graduated  series  ;  I  did  the  same  for  numbers  ;  I  filled 
whole  note-books  with  them ;  I  sought  by  every  means 
to  simplify  the  elements  of  reading  and  arithmetic,  and 
by  grouping  them  psychologically,  enable  the  child  to 
pass  easily  and  surely  from  the  first  step  to  the  second, 
from  the  second  to  the  third,  and  so  on.     The  pupils  no 


PESTALOZZI   AS   TEACHER.  285 

longer  drew  letters  on  their  slates,  but  lines,  curves, 
angles  and  squares." 

In  How  Gertrude  Teaches  Pestalozzi  again  refers  to 
his  experiences,  and  says :  "  Being  obliged  to  instruct 
the  children  by  myself,  without  any  assistance,  I  learned 
the  art  of  teaching  a  great  number  together;  and  as  I 
had  no  other  means  of  bringing  the  instruction  before 
them,  than  that  of  pronouncing  everything  to  them 
loudly  and  distinctly,  I  was  naturally  led  to  the  idea 
of  making  them  draw,  write,  or  work,  at  the  same 
time.  The  confusion  of  so  many  voices  repeating  my 
words  suggested  the  necessity  of  keeping  time  in  our 
exercises,  and  I  soon  found  that  this  contributed 
materially  to  make  their  impressions  stronger  and 
more  distinct." 

So  far  we  have  had  Pestalozzi  speaking  about  himself, 
now  we  will  see  what  others  say  about  him,  on  the 
same  points.  Baron  de  Guimps,  in  his  biography  of 
Pestalozzi,  when  giving  an  account  of  the  work  at 
Stanz — an  account  which,  he  asserts,  is  wholly  based 
on  official  documents — says :  '*  Visitors  to  the  establish- 
ment often  saw  nothing  but  disorder  and  confusion, 
with  an  entire  absence,  as  it  seemed,  of  all  serious 
instruction  ".  M.  Zschokke,  the  Government  Agent  at 
Stanz  during  Pestalozzi's  time  there,  in  his  History  of 
the  Memorable  Facts  of  the  Swiss  Revolution — published  in 
1804 — says  of  the  school,  after  Pestalozzi  left  it:  "  The 
orphans,  however,  were  still  carefully  taught,  and  such 
matters  as  order  and  cleanliness,  which  had  previously 
been  neglected,  received  particular  attention  ".  M.  Buss, 
one  of  Pestalozzi's  first  assistants,  speaking  of  his  first 
meeting  with  Pestalozzi,  says :  "  The  following  morning 
I  entered  his  school :  and,  at  first,  I  confess  I  saw  in  it 


286  PESTALOZZI. 

nothing  but  apparent  disorder,  and  an  uncomfortable 
bustle". 

The  fullest  sketch  of  Pestalozzi's  proceedings  in  class 
is  given  by  his  pupil  Ramsauer.  In  reading  this  it 
should  be  remembered  that  the  events  happened  when 
Ramsauer  was  about  ten  years  of  age  and  were  described 
thirty-eight  years  later.  At  the  same  time  it  should  not 
be  forgotten  that  he  was  so  long  and  so  intimately  con- 
nected with  Pestalozzi  and  his  work  that  he  is  not  very 
likely  to  have  exaggerated  or  misrepresented  matters 
much.  This  is  his  account :  *'  So  far  as  ordinary  school 
knowledge  was  concerned,  neither  I  nor  the  other  boys 
learned  anything.  But  his  zeal,  love  and  unselfishness, 
combined  with  his  painful  and  serious  position,  evident 
even  to  the  children,  made  a  most  profound  impression 
upon  me,  and  won  my  child's  heart,  naturally  disposed 
to  be  grateful,  for  ever.  .  .  . 

'*  It  is  impossible  to  draw  a  clear  and  complete 
picture  of  this  school,  but  here  are  a  few  details.  Ac- 
cording to  the  ideas  of  Pestalozzi,  all  teaching  was  to 
start  from  three  elements:  language,  number  and  form. 
He  had  no  plan  of  studies  and  no  order  of  lessons,  and 
as  he  did  not  limit  himself  to  any  fixed  time,  he  often 
followed  the  same  subject  for  two  or  three  hours  to- 
gether. We  were  about  sixty  boys  and  girls,  from 
eight  to  fifteen  years  old.  Our  lessons  lasted  from 
eight  till  eleven  in  the  morning,  and  from  two  till  four 
in  the  afternoon.  All  the  teaching  was  limited  to  draw- 
ing, arithmetic,  and  exercises  in  language.  We  neither 
read  nor  wrote  ;  we  had  neither  books  nor  copy-books ; 
we  learned  nothing  by  heart. 

"  For  drawing  we  were  given  neither  models  nor 
directions  ;  only  slates  and  red  chalk,  and  while  Pesta- 


PESTALOZZI   AS   TEACHER.  28/ 

lozzi  was  making  us  repeat  sentences  on  natural  history 
as  an  exercise  in  language,  we  had  to  draw  just  what 
we  Hked.  But  we  did  not  know  what  to  draw.  Some 
of  us  drew  little  men  and  women,  others  houses,  others 
lines  or  arabesques,  according  to  their  fancy.  Pesta- 
lozzi  never  looked  at  what  we  had  drawn,  or  rather 
scribbled,  but  from  the  state  of  our  clothes  it  was  pretty 
evident  that  we  had  been  using  red  chalk.  For  arith- 
metic we  had  little  boards  divided  into  squares,  in 
which  were  dots  that  we  had  to  count,  add,  subtract, 
multiply  and  divide.  It  was  from  this  that  Kriisi  and 
Buss  first  took  the  idea  of  their  '  table  of  units,'  and 
afterwards  of  their  *  table  of  fractions  '.  But  as  Pesta- 
lozzi  did  nothing  but  make  us  repeat  these  exercises 
one  after  another,  without  asking  us  any  questions, 
this  process,  excellent  as  it  was,  never  did  us  very  much 
good. 

"  Our  master  never  had  the  patience  to  go  back,  and, 
carried  away  by  his  excessive  zeal,  he  paid  little  atten- 
tion to  each  individual  scholar.  The  language  exercises 
were  the  best  thing  we  had,  especially  those  on  the 
wall-paper  of  the  schoolroom,  which  were  real  practices 
in  sense-impression.  We  spent  hours  before  this  old 
and  torn  paper,  occupied  in  examining  the  number, 
form,  position  and  colour  of  the  different  designs,  holes 
and  rents,  and  expressing  our  ideas  in  more  and  more 
enlarged  sentences.  Thus  he  would  ask  :  '  Boys,  what 
do  you  see  ?  '     He  never  addressed  the  girls. 

''  Answer.     *  A  hole  in  the  paper.' 

"  Pestalozzi.  '  Very  well,.say  after  me  :  I  see  a  hole  in 
the  paper.  I  see  a  long  hole  in  the  paper.  Through 
the  hole  I  see  the  wall.  Through  the  long  narrow  hole 
I  see  the  wall.     I    see  figures  on  the  paper.      I    see 


288  PESTALOZZI. 

black  figures  on  the  paper.  I  see  a  square  yellow  figure 
on  the  paper.  By  the  side  of  the  square  yellow  figure 
I  see  a  round  black  one.  The  square  figure  is  joined 
to  the  round  figure  by  a  large  black  stroke ' — and  so  on. 

"  Of  less  utility  were  those  exercises  in  language 
which  he  took  from  natural  history,  and  in  which  we 
had  to  repeat  after  him,  and  at  the  same  time  to  draw, 
as  I  have  already  mentioned.  He  would  say  :  Amphi- 
bious animals :  crawling  amphibious  animals  ;  creeping 
amphibious  animals.  Monkeys :  long-tailed  monkeys  ; 
short-tailed  monkeys — and  so  on. 

"  We  did  not  understand  a  word  of  this,  for  not  a 
word  was  explained,  and  it  was  all  spoken  in  such  a 
sing-song  tone,  and  so  rapidly  and  indistinctly,  that  it 
would  have  been  a  wonder  if  any  one  had  understood 
anything  from  it ;  besides,  Pestalozzi  cried  out  so  dread- 
fully loudly  and  so  continuously,  that  he  could  not  hear 
us  repeat  after  him,  the  less  so  as  he  never  waited 
for  us  when  he  had  read  out  a  sentence,  but  went  on 
without  intermission,  and  read  off  a  whole  page  at 
once.  What  he  thus  read  out  was  drawn  up  on  a 
half-sheet  of  large-sized  millboard,  and  our  repetition 
consisted  for  the  most  part  in  saying  the  last  word  or 
syllable  of  each  phrase,  thus  '  monkeys — monkeys,'  or 
*  keys — keys  '.  There  was  never  any  questioning  or 
recapitulations. 

*'  As  Pestalozzi,  in  his  zeal,  did  not  take  any  notice 
of  the  time,  we  generally  went  on  till  eleven  o'clock 
with  whatever  he  had  commenced  at  eight,  and  by  ten 
o'clock  he  was  always  tired  and  hoarse.  We  knew 
when  it  was  eleven  by  the  noise  of  other  school-children 
in  the  street,  and  then  usually  we  all  ran  out,  without 
asking  permission.  ... 


PESTALOZZI   AS   TEACHER.  289 

"  I  must  further  say  that  in  the  first  years  of  the 
Burgdorf  institute,  nothing  like  a  systematic  plan  of 
lessons  was  followed,  and  that  the  whole  life  of  the 
place  was  so  simple  and  home-like,  that  in  the  half- 
hour's  recreation  which  followed  breakfast,  Pestaloz^i 
would  often  become  so  interested  in  the  spirited  games 
of  the  children  in  the  playground  as  to  allow  them  to 
go  on  undisturbed  till  ten  o'clock.  And  on  summer 
evenings,  after  bathing  in  the  Emme,  instead  of  be- 
ginning work  again,  we  often  stayed  out  till  eight  or 
nine  o'clock  looking  for  plants  and  minerals." 

The  commission  appointed  by  the  "  Society  of  the 
Friends  of  Education  "  to  report  on  Pestalozzi's  work  at 
Burgdorf,  mentions  that  singing  and  walking  often  took 
the  place  of  the  regular  lessons.  M.  Stapfer  states  that 
Pestalozzi's  personal  neglect  and  his  strange  ways  de- 
stroyed his  authority  so  that  he  lost  control  of  his  pupils, 
and  the  prefect  Schnell  had  to  go  to  his  assistance. 

Raumer,  speaking  of  his  stay  at  Yverdon,  says :  "  If 
I  wanted  to  do  any  work  for  myself,  I  had  to  do  it  while 
standing  at  a  writing-desk  in  the  midst  of  the  tumult  of 
one  of  the  classes  ". 

Karl  Ritter  said  :  "  Pestalozzi  himself  is  unable  to 
apply  his  own  method  in  any  of  the  simplest  subjects  of 
instruction.  He  is  quick  in  grasping  principles,  but  is 
helpless  in  matters  of  detail ;  he  possesses  the  faculty, 
however,  of  putting  his  views  with  such  force  and  clear- 
ness that  he  has  no  difficulty  in  getting  them  carried 
out."  This  is,  however,  a  description  of  Pestalozzi  at 
Yverdon,  when,  it  must  be  remembered,  he  had  given 
up  actual  teaching,  and  where  most  of  the  matter 
taught  was  on  a  very  much  higher  level  than  he  had 
himself  ever  attempted. 

19 


290  PESTALOZZL 

Kriisi  thus  describes  Pestalozzi's  manner  in  teaching  : 
'*  He  had,  I  was  going  to  say,  almost  brazen  lungs,  and 
any  one  who  had  not  such  would  have  to  abandon  all 
idea  of  speaking,  or  rather  shouting,  incessantly  as  he 
did.  Even  if  I  had  had  such  lungs  myself,  I  should 
often  have  desired  that  he  and  his  pupils,  when  reciting 
or  answering  in  class,  might  have  used  more  modera- 
tion and  lowered  their  voices.  .  .  .  He  endeavoured  to 
teach  two  subjects  to  a  class  at  the  same  time  ;  he  tried 
in  particular  to  combine  exercises  in  speaking  with  free- 
hand drawing  and  writing." 


CHAPTER  XV. 

SOME  CRITICISMS  ON  PESTALOZZI'S  THEORIES. 

The  intelligent  student  of  the  science  of  education 
who  does  not  know  more  than  Pestalozzi — and  this 
chiefly  because  of  what  Pestalozzi's  life  and  work  have 
done  for  education — about  some  of  the  principles  and 
practice  of  education  has  not  yet  mastered  the  outlines 
of  his  study.  The  advance  in  psychology — there  was 
no  psychology,  in  the  modern  sense,  in  Pestalozzi's 
time — alone  has  been  so  great  that  our  knowledge  of 
educational  ways  and  means  is  very  much  in  advance 
of  what  was  possible  in  Pestalozzi's  time ;  and  the 
progress  in  practical  methods  has,  in  the  case  of  the 
most  intelligent  educators,  been  very  considerable.  But 
while  we  reverently,  but  unflinchingly,  sit  in  judgment 
on  that  to  which  no  higher  compliment  can  be  paid 
than  to  feel  that  it  merits  our  efforts  to  remove  all  that 
may  obscure  the  pure  light  of  its  great  truths,  let  us  never 
forget  that  we  do  but  brush  the  dust  from  the  shoes  of  a 
master — one  whose  shoe-latchets  we  may  not  be  worthy 
to  unloose.  After  we  have  done  this,  let  us,  as  it  were, 
once  more  stand  back  and  respectfully  take  a  full  view 
of  the  whole  man  ;  and  then  shall  we  again  feel  that  we 
must  "  praise  noble  men  and  the  fathers  that  begat  us  ". 
The  folly  of  the  wise  is  often  greater  than  the  wisdom 
of  others  :  and  we  are  not  holy  because  we  can  see 
faults  in  a  saint, 

291  19  * 


292  PESTALOZZI. 

Nor  need  we  fear  to  undertake  such  a  task  in  such  a 
spirit,  for  men  like  Pestalozzi  are  not  only  worthy  of 
this  tribute  from  their  disciples,  but  they  themselves 
desire  it.  They  are  concerned  to  teach  what  is  true, 
and  to  help  their  pupils  to  yet  higher  and  fuller  truths. 

Thus  Pestalozzi  writes,  in  his  Swans  Song :  "  And 
so  I  end  my  dying  strain  with  the  words  with  which  I 
began  it :  Prove  all  things  and  hold  fast  that  which  is 
good  !  If  anything  better  has  ripened  in  you,  add  it  in 
truth  and  love  to  what  in  truth  and  love  I  have  en- 
deavoured to  give  to  you  in  these  pages.  .  .  .  Such  as 
it  is,  give  it  an  attentive  examination,  and  whenever 
you  yourself  light  upon  a  truth  which  you  think  likely 
to  benefit  humanity,  do  what  you  can  for  it,  not  so 
much  for  my  sake  as  for  that  of  the  end  I  have  in  view. 
I  ask  nothing  better  than  to  be  put  on  one  side,  and  re- 
placed by  others,  in  all  matters  that  others  understand 
better  than  I  do ;  so  that  they  may  be  enabled  to  serve 
mankind  better  than  I  have  ever  been  able  to  do." 
He  also  speaks  of  himself  as  "  a  man  who  wishes  that 
others  may  take  up  what  he  has  commenced,  and  suc- 
ceed where  he  may  have  failed  "  (On  Infants^  Education). 

The  Simultaneous  Oral  Method.  Raumer  had  a 
discussion  (at  Yverdon)  with  Pestalozzi  on  this  matter, 
in  which  he  very  acutely  criticised  the  method.  Pesta- 
lozzi had  urged  Raumer  to  teach  mineralogy  at  the 
institute,  and  Raumer  replied :  "  If  I  do  so,  I  must 
entirely  depart  from  the  methods  of  instruction  pursued 
in  the  institution.  Why  so  ?  asked  Pestalozzi.  Ac- 
cording to  that  method,  I  replied,  I  should  have  to  do 
nothing  but  hold  up  before  the  boys  one  specimen  after 
another,  to  give  the  name  of  each,  for  example:  'That 
js  ch^lk,'  and  thereupon  to  make  the  class  repeat  in 


SOME  CRITICISMS.  293 

unison  three  times :  '  That  is  chalk  '.  It  was  thought 
that  in  this  way  observation  of  actual  objects  and  in- 
struction in  language  were  provided  for  at  the  same 
time. 

"  I  endeavoured  to  explain  that  such  a  mode  of 
instruction  made  a  mere  show,  giving  the  children 
words  before  they  had  formed  an  idea  of  the  images  of 
the  minerals ;  that  moreover  the  process  of  perception 
and  conception  was  only  disturbed  by  the  talking  of  the 
teacher  and  the  repetition  of  the  scholars,  and  was 
therefore  best  done  in  silence.  On  Pestalozzi's  oppos- 
ing this  view,  I  asked  him  why  children  are  born 
speechless,  and  do  not  begin  to  learn  to  speak  until 
they  are  about  three  years  old ;  why  we  should  in  vain 
hold  a  light  before  a  child  eight  days  old,  and  say 
*  light '  three  times,  or  even  a  hundred  times,  as  the 
child  would  certainly  not  try  to  repeat  the  word ; 
whether  this  was  not  an  indication  to  us,  from  a  higher 
hand,  that  time  is  necessary  for  the  external  perception 
of  the  senses  to  become  internally  appropriated,  so  that 
the  word  shall  only  come  forth  as  the  matured  fruit  of 
the  inward  conception,  now  fully  formed.  What  I  said 
about  the  silence  of  children  struck  Pestalozzi." 

Dr.  Biber  also  has  a  shrewd  and  suggestive  criticism 
on  this  subject.  He  says  that  the  use  of  simultaneous 
work  in  education  ''depends  entirely  on  the  stage  of 
development  which  the  children  have  attained.  With 
such  as  have  grown  up  in  a  condition  almost  savage, 
or  worse  than  savage,  and  who  are  for  the  first  time 
brought  together  under  an  influence  intended  for  their 
improvement,  the  lowest  degree  of  simultaneous  action 
is  calculated  to  arouse  the  soul  from  that  selfish  indo- 
lence in  which  it  loves  nothing,  and  observes  nothing, 


294  PESTALOZZI. 

but  self;  and  disturbs  everything  around  it,  not  from  a 
wish  to  do  so,  but  from  an  exclusive  tendency  to  follow 
self,  and  from  an  entire  inattention  to  the  fact  that  there 
exists  anything  but  itself." 

Without  entering  into  details  we  may  suggest  some 
points  which  arise  in  the  consideration  of  this  method : 
(i)  How  far  does  it  enable  a  few  to  lead,  and  all  the 
others  to  follow  mechanically — compare  the  case  of 
members  of  a  choir  who  cannot  sing  a  simple  tune 
directly  from  the  score,  but  can  manage  quite  difficult 
pieces  when  accompanied  by  piano,  organ,  or  orchestra  ; 

(2)  how  far  is  the  effect  likely  to  be  almost  wholly  aural, 
i.e.,  the  ear-memory  is  chiefly,  if  not  wholly,  cultivated ; 

(3)  how  far  is  the  sound,  or  the  sentence,  likely  to  be 
corrupted  and  misunderstood  in  the  mixture  of  voices ; 

(4)  how  far  is  the  teacher  likely  to  be  able  to  tell 
whether  an  individual  is  really,  partly,  or  wrongly  doing 
what  is  expected;  (5)  how  far  is  the  method  likely  to 
discourage  initiative,  self-activity  and  self-dependence ; 
(6)  how  far  can  a  method  which  demands  so  much  uni- 
formity meet,  to  any  reasonable  extent,  the  diversity  of 
quickness,  intelligence,  knowledge  and  ability  v/hich 
must  exist  even  in  the  most  homogeneous  class;  (7) 
how  far  are  the  possible,  and  actual,  results  of  such  a 
method — muscular-memory,  nerve-memory,  etc. — worth 
the  time  and  trouble  taken,  in  a  system  of  true  educa- 
tion ;  (8)  would  not  these  results  be  necessarily  produced 
by  the  truly  educational  method,  and,  therefore,  more 
surely  and  soundly ;  (9)  how  far  does  it  interfere  with,  or 
prevent,  the  intuitive  activity  which  Pestalozzi  regards 
as  the  essential  of  all  true  education. 

Mutual  Instruction.  Several  references  have  already 
been  made  to  the  fact  that  Pestalozzi  set  children  to 


SOME   CRITICISMS.  295 

teach  other  children.  Some  used  this  as  an  argument 
in  favour  of  Bell's  and  Lancaster's  monitorial  system. 
It  is,  however,  clear  that  there  is  a  great  difference 
between  the  two,  e.g.,  Pestalozzi  used  one  child  to  teach 
one  other  child — or  two  other  children — whilst  Bell  and 
Lancaster  used  one  child  to  teach  a  group  of  other 
children ;  and  Pestalozzi  made  use  of  a  child  who  had 
been  developed  by  his  teaching  until  it  had  an  in- 
telligent mastery  of  whatever  it  was  allowed  to  show  to 
others,  whilst  Bell  and  Lancaster  simply  drilled  their 
monitors  in  certain  matter  and  method,  and  then  set 
them  to  drill  groups  of  other  children  in  the  same  matter 
and  by  the  same  method. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  what  Pestalozzi  and  Dr.  Bell 
thought  of  each  other's  system.  In  1815  the  latter 
visited  the  institute  at  Yverdon,  and  at  the  end  of  his 
visit  remarked  to  the  interpreter  (Ackermann,  a  former 
pupil  with  Pestalozzi)  who  accompanied  him :  "  In 
another  twelve  years  mutual  instruction  will  be  adopted 
by  the  whole  world,  and  Pestalozzi's  method  will  be 
forgotten ".  A  few  days  afterwards  a  casual  visitor 
said  to  Pestalozzi :  "It  is  you,  sir,  I  believe,  who  in- 
vented mutual  instruction  ?  "  *'  God  forbid !  "  answered 
Pestalozzi. 

We  suggest  the  following  points  for  consideration : 
(i)  Will  the  brightest  or  the  dullest  children  receive 
such  instruction ;  (2)  if  the  dullest,  do  they  need  the 
most,  or  least,  skilful  educator;  (3)  is  even  a  bright 
child  the  best,  or  a  good,  agent  for  securing  what  Pesta- 
lozzi meant  when  he  said,  "  I  want  to  psychologise 
education  "  ;  (4)  is  telling  (or  showing)  the  same  thing, 
in  method  and  eifect,  as  teaching ;  (5)  does,  or  can,  one 
child  consciously  realise,  understand  and  diagnose  the 


296  PESTALOZZI. 

weaknesses  and  difficulties  of  another  child,  and  provide 
for  and  solve  them  educationally ;  and  (6)  are  the  pos- 
sible, and  actual,  results  of  the  method  worth  the  time 
and  trouble  taken,  in  a  system  of  true  education.  Is 
there  any  pertinence  in  the  saying  :  "  Can  the  blind  lead 
the  blind  ?  shall  they  both  not  fall  into  the  ditch  ?  " 

Number  Teaching.  It  will  be  remembered  that 
Pestalozzi  proceeds  to  develop  ideas  of  number  by  con- 
stantly adding  one  more  to  the  commencing  unit.  On 
this  Dr.  Biber  remarks:  '' Pestalozzi  considers  number 
only  seriatim,  and,  therefore,  considers  all  arithmetic  as 
a  mere  enlargement  or  abridgment  of  the  form.ula  '  one 
and  one  are  two  ' ;  overlooking  altogether  the  important 
fact  that  this  formula,  which  expresses  the  juxtaposi- 
tion of  two  objects,  presupposes  in  the  mind  the  idea  of 
two.  In  the  same  manner  its  enlargement  in  '  one  and 
one  and  one  are  three,'  presupposes  the  idea  of  three ; 
for  this  simple  reason  that  it  is  impossible  to  conceive 
the  operation  of  putting  together,  without  having  an 
idea  of  that  which  is  to  be  put  together,  no  more  than 
it  is  possible  to  conceive  the  operation  of  building  with- 
out any  idea  of  building  materials. 

"The  origin  of  number  must  not  be  sought  in  the 
repetition  of  units ;  because  without  the  previous  idea 
of  number,  the  idea  of  repetition  could  not  exist.  .  .  . 
Whence  shall  we  obtain  it  ?  .  .  .  The  answer  to  this 
question  is  given  in  what  may  appropriately  be  termed 
the  generic  power  of  number,  or  the  power  of  every 
number  [i.e.,  what  is  more  than  one]  to  produce  out  of 
itself  an  indefinite  series  of  numbers." 

This  is  somewhat  obscure,  but  suggests  a  sound 
criticism  on  Pestalozzi's  theory,  viz.,  that  the  basis  of 
number  is,  in  its  earliest  stages,  what  we  may  term  a 


SOME   CRITICISMS.  297 

collective-divisible  idea,  not  an  individual-multiple  idea. 
As  Professor  James  says:  "Number  seems  to  signify 
primarily  the  strokes  of  our  attention  in  discriminating 
things.  These  strokes  remain  in  the  memory  in  groups, 
large  or  small,  and  the  groups  can  be  compared.  The 
discrimination  is,  as  we  know,  psychologically  facilitated 
by  the  mobility  of  the  thing  as  a  total.  But  within  each 
thing  we  discriminate  parts ;  so  that  the  number  of  the 
things  which  any  one  thing  may  be  depends  in  the  last 
instance  on  our  way  of  taking  it.  A  globe  is  one,  if  un- 
divided ;  two,  if  composed  of  hemispheres.  A  sand-heap 
is  one  thing,  or  twenty  thousand  things,  as  we  may 
choose  to  count  it.  We  amuse  ourselves  by  the  count- 
ing of  mere  strokes,  to  form  rhythms,  and  these  we 
compare  and  name.  Little  by  little  in  our  minds  the 
number-series  is  formed." 

It  is  the  group  element  of  the  idea  which  is,  in  the 
first  instance — and  always,  for  purposes  of  computation 
— the  most  important,  and  helpful,  to  the  learner.  The 
thorough  grasp  of  what  "  three  "  is,  as  three,  and  the 
ready  mental  recognition  of  it  as  part  of  a  larger  group 
should  be  first  secured.  Its  analysis  into  two  and  one  : 
one  and  one  and  one,  will,  so  to  say,  come  of  itself.  Of 
course  the  intuition  of  numbers  as  groups  cannot  be 
carried  very  far,  because  of  visual  limitations ;  but 
after  the  collective-divisible  phase  is  exhausted  the 
collective-multiple  idea  can  be  employed,  i.e.,  a  group  of 
things  in  which  two  fours  can  be  seen  is  eight,  etc. 

Language,  form  and  number,  as  the  fundamental 
elements  in  all  intuitions,  is  a  theory  which  is  open  to 
very  serious  criticisms.  Whilst,  no  doubt,  the  applica- 
tion of  these  as  channels  of  information,  about  such 
intuitions  as  admit  of  it,  is  very  helpful ;  they  cannot 


298  PESTALOZZI. 

be  applied  to  all  intuitions,  and  are  not  essential  to 
many,  e.g.-,  shades  of  sharpness  and  flatness  in  sing- 
ing, etc.  (no  names),  water  (no  shape),  sweetness  (no 
number).  Yet  Pestalozzi  asserts  "  that  all  our  know- 
ledge arises  out  of  number,  form  and  words  ".  Again, 
he  says  that  '*  number,  form  and  name  are  found  uni- 
versally in  all  objects  ".  This  is  seriously  wrong,  for 
number  and  name  are,  so  to  say,  attached  to  objects 
by  ourselves,  not  found  in  them ;  whilst  form  only 
belongs  to  certain  physical  objects. 

He  is  self-contradictory  in  some  of  his  own  state- 
ments on  the  matter.  Though  he  rightly  says  that 
language  *'is  the  reflex  of  all  the  impressions  which 
nature's  entire  domain  has  made  on  the  human  race"  ; 
he,  nevertheless,  goes  on  to  claim  for  it  that  it  is  also 
the  origin  and  source  of  knowledge  :  **  I  make  use  of  it, 
and  endeavour,  by  the  guidance  of  its  uttered  sounds,  to 
reproduce  in  the  child  the  self-same  impressions  which, 
in  the  human  race,  have  occasioned  and  formed  these 
sounds.  Great  is  the  gift  of  language.  It  gives  to  the 
child  in  one  moment  what  nature  required  thousands  of 
years  to  give  to  man." 

A  sound  cannot  possibly  do  this.  It  can  only  recall 
those  impressions  which  objects  and  experiences  have 
made,  and  which  have  been  voluntary  (and  arbitrarily) 
associated  with  certain  sounds  which  we  call  names. 
We  might  have  called  a  horse  a  pimho ;  and  whatever 
sound  we  use  as  its  name  is  only  useful  to  recall  the 
impressions  which  the  animal  (or  its  picture,  etc.)  has 
made  upon  us.  A  simple  illustration  of  this  will  show 
what  the  facts  are :  suppose  a  child  to  read  a  list  of 
the  names  of  things  in  a  miscellaneous  collection  in  a 
museum,  what  impressions  would  be  reproduced  in  him 


SOME  CRITICISMS.  299 

by  the  names  which  he  does  not  ah'eady  know.  In 
other  words,  the  sound  apart  from  its  association  does 
nothing;  it  is  the  habitual  association  of  sound  with 
percepts  and  concepts  which  is  the  active  influence.  All 
this  is  very  clearly  set  out  in  what  Pestalozzi  says  of 
definitions :  "  Whenever  he  [man]  is  left  without  the 
greatest  clearness  of  observation  of  a  natural  object 
which  has  been  defined  to  him,  he  only  learns  to  play 
with  words  like  so  many  counters,  deceives  himself,  and 
places  a  blind  belief  in  sounds  which  will  convey  to  him 
no  idea,  nor  give  rise  to  any  other  thought,  except  just 
this,  that  he  has  uttered  certain  sounds".  In  other 
words,  the  only  impressions  reproduced  by  sounds,  as 
such,  are  impressions  already  made  by  sounds,  as  such. 
Yet,  after  all,  Pestalozzi  did  a  great  service  to  educa- 
tion by  insisting  upon  the  importance  and  value  of 
these  points  of  view  in  the  development  of  clear  ideas 
and  distinct  notions ;  he  was  only  wrong  in  the  reasons 
he  gave  for  his  views.  His  own  statement  of  the 
practical  purpose  of  his  use  of  these  three  points  is 
significant.  He  says  that  he  bases  instruction  upon 
them  "  in  order  to  enable  children  :  (i)  to  view  every 
object  which  falls  under  their  perception  as  a  unit ; 
that  is  to  say,  as  distinct  from  all  other  objects  with 
which  it  seems  connected.  (2)  To  make  themselves 
acquainted  with  its  form  or  outline,  with  its  measure 
and  its  proportions.  (3)  To  designate,  as  early  as 
possible,  by  descriptive  words  and  names,  all  the  ob- 
jects which  have  thus  come  to  their  knowledge.  .  .  . 
This  requires  that  the  means  by  which  those  faculties 
[number,  form  and  language]  are  developed  and  culti- 
vated, should  be  brought  to  the  utmost  simplicity,  and 
to  perfect  consistency  and  harmony  with  each  other." 


300  PESTALOZZI. 

All  this  is  admirable  so  far  as  it  goes,  and  in  cases  in 
which  it  can  be  applied;  though  it  does  not  justify  the 
claims  which  Pestalozzi  made  for  it.  But,  as  he  him- 
self says  :  ^'my  whole  manner  of  life  has  given  me  no 
power,  or  inclination,  quickly  to  work  out  bright  and 
clear  ideas  on  a  subject,  until,  supported  by  facts  it  has 
a  background  in  me  that  gives  rise  to  some  self-con- 
fidence. Therefore,  to  my  grave  I  shall  remain  in  a 
kind  of  fog  about  most  of  my  views.  .  .  .  While  I  have 
done  very  little  during  my  life  to  reach  ideas  that  can 
be  defined  with  philosophical  certainty ;  nevertheless,  I 
have,  in  my  own  way,  found  a  few  means  to  my  end, 
which  I  should  not  have  found  by  philosophical  in- 
quiries— such  as  I  was  capable  of  making — after  clear 
ideas  on  my  subject." 

*' Discover  everything.'*  Ramsauer,  speaking  of 
Pestalozzi's  relations  with  his  staff,  says:  ''Even  in 
our  pedagogics,  he  would  not  permit  us  to  make  use 
of  the  results  of  the  experience  of  other  times  or  other 
countries :  we  were  to  read  nothing,  but  discover  every- 
thing for  ourselves.  Hence  the  whole  strength  of  the 
institute  was  always  devoted  to  experiments." 

Truttman  observed  the  same  attitude  of  mind  in 
Pestalozzi,  in  connection  with  the  work  at  Stanz.  De- 
scribing what  he  considered  the  faults  of  organisation 
and  method,  he  says:  "I  begged  him  even  to  go  to 
Zurich,  to  study  in  detail  the  organisation  of  the  poor- 
school  in  that  town,  with  a  view  to  imitating  it,  as  far 
as  possible  in  Stanz.  He  accordingly  went,  but  I  do 
not  expect  any  satisfactory  outcome  from  his  visit,  be- 
cause his  idea  is  to  do  everything  for  himself,  without 
any  plan,  and  without  any  assistance  other  than  that 
given  by  the  children  themselves." 


SOME  CRITICISMS.  30I 

Now  whilst  for  the  student-beginner  the  discovery 
method  of  training  is  of  the  highest  possible  value,  and 
an  indispensable  training ;  its  chief  value  later  on  is  that 
it  enables  the  learner  to  take  real  advantage  of  other 
men's  work  and  to  enter  into  their  labours,  without  going 
through  all  the  work  they  had  to  perform.  But  for  men 
who  were  engaged  in  so  difficult  and  delicate  a  task  as 
that  of  educating  the  young,  and  who  were  themselves 
largely  untrained  and  undisciplined,  intellectually,  to 
refuse  to  make  use  of  existing  means — if  they  could 
approve  them — was,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  unwise. 

Not  that  there  was  much  of  which  Pestalozzi  could 
approve  ;  but  the  attitude  of  mind  was,  in  itself,  wrong  ; 
and  was  likely  to  cause  much  waste  of  time  and,  per- 
haps, undue  self-satisfaction.  It  will  he  remembered 
that  Pestalozzi — so  far  did  he  carry  this  idea — several 
times  boasts  that  he  has  not  read  a  book  for  nearly 
thirty  years.  One  instance  will  suffice  to  show  the 
mistake  of  all  this  :  Basedow  had  endeavoured  to  carry 
out,  at  his  Philanthropmum  school  at  Dessau,  the  prin- 
ciples of  Rousseau's  Entile ;  and  amidst  much  that  was 
superficial  and  merely  sensational,  was  doing  some  good 
work.  A  study  of  his  work  and  writings  would  have 
taught  something,  of  both  positive  and  negative  value, 
to  the  Pestalozzians. 

Criticising  this  attitude,  Raumer  writes :  "Hence  it 
came,  as  I  have  already  said,  that  he  committed  so 
many  mistakes  usual  with  self-taught  men.  He  wants 
the  historical  basis  ;  things  which  others  had  discovered 
long  before  appear  to  him  to  be  quite  new  when  thought 
of  by  himself  or  any  one  of  his  teachers.  He  also  tor- 
ments himself  to  invent  things  which  had  been  invented 
and  brought  to  perfection  long  before,  and  might  have 


302  f'ESTALOZZI. 

been  used  by  him,  if  he  had  only  known  of  them.  For 
example,  how  useful  an  acquaintance  with  the  excellent 
Werner's  treatment  of  the  mineralogical  characters  of 
rocks  would  have  been  to  him,  especially  in  the  defini- 
tion of  the  ideas,  observation,  naming,  description,  etc. 

*'  As  a  self-taught  man,  he  every  day  collected  heaps 
of  stones  in  his  walks.  If  he  had  been  under  the  dis- 
cipline of  the  Fribourg  School,  the  observation  of  a 
single  stone  would  have  profited  him  more  than  large 
heaps  of  stones,  laboriously  brought  together,  could  do, 
in  the  absence  of  such  discipline. 

"Self-taught  men,  I  say,  want  the  discipline  of  the 
school.  It  is  not  simply  that,  in  the  province  of  the 
intellectual,  they  often  find  only  after  long  wanderings 
what  they  might  easily  have  attained  by  a  direct  and 
beaten  path :  they  want  also  the  ethical  discipline, 
which  restrains  us  from  running  according  to  caprice 
after  intellectual  enjoyments,  and  wholesomely  compels 
us  to  deny  ourselves  and  follow  the  path  indicated  to 
us  by  the  teacher. 

"  Many,  it  is  true,  fear  that  the  oracular  instinct  of 
the  self-taught  might  suffer  from  the  school.  But,  if 
the  school  is  of  the  right  sort,  this  instinct,  if  genuine, 
will  be  strengthened  by  it ;  deep  felt,  dreamy  and 
passive  presentiments  are  transformed  into  sound, 
waking  and  active  observation." 

Anybody  can  teach.  Pestalozzi's  views  on  this  point 
raises  some  very  serious  and  important  issues.  Is  all 
our  modern  zeal  for  technical  education  and  training  a 
mistake :  is  the  man  in  the  street,  if  he  be  told  how,  as 
capable  as  the  well-trained  expert  who  knows  both  the 
why  and  the  how  in  a  scientific  and  practical  way :  is 
the  school  as  the  teacher's  book,  or  as  the  teacher :  is 


SOME  CRITICISMS.  303 

the  final  efficiency  of  the  worker  to  be  measured  by  the 
quality  and  power  of  his  mind  and  character,  or  by 
those  of  the  one  who  simply  gives  him  instructions  to 
be  carried  out :  is  the  educator  a  machine  minder  or  a 
mind  maker?  These  are  questions  which  must  be 
settled  in  deciding  such  a  point. 

At  the  same  time  there  are  elements  of  truth  even  in 
the  extremest  view  of  the  statement  that  any  one  can 
teach.  In  the  first  place,  any  one  with  ordinary  in- 
teUigence  and  power  can,  by  careful  and  thorough 
training,  be  made  into  an  averagely  good  teacher.  It 
is  not  necessary  to  be  a  "born  teacher'*  to  be  a  good 
practical  teacher.  The  ''born  teacher" — to  give  the 
phrase  real  meaning — is  one  with  at  least  a  touch  of 
genius  for  teaching,  i.e.,  he  has  exceptional  native 
capacity  and  disposition  for  the  work  of  teaching.  Any 
one  can  play  five-finger  exercises  on  the  piano  satis- 
factorily, if  he  be  not  defective  in  mind  or  deformed  of 
hand ;  but  one  must  be  born  with  exceptional  powers 
of  mind  and  hand  to  become  a  really  first-rate  pianist, 
— of  the  type  of  which  such  men  as  Paderewski  are  the 
supreme  examples. 

Further,  it  is  true  that,  without  any  training  what- 
ever, an  intelligent  person  can  follow  a  course  of 
action  laid  down  by  another,  and  that  certain  results 
will  be  obtained  according  as  the  course  itself  is  sound, 
and  the  worker  carries  it  out  thoroughly  and  accurately. 
But  even  material  machines  go  wrong,  and  the  best  of 
courses  do  not  fit  every  possible  circumstance.  What 
can  the  person  who  does  not  understand  the  machinery, 
and  knows  nothing  of  the  system  except  that  he  is  to 
follow  it  as  laid  down,  do  when  either  the  one  or  the 
other  fails  to  keep   to  what  is  ordinarily  expected  of 


304  PESTALOZZI. 

them  ?  If  this  be  so  of  material  machinery,  how  much 
more  is  it  true  of  living  and  growing  things,  and 
especially  of  so  complex  and  delicate  a  living  organism 
as  the  human  being  ? 

Again,  it  is  even  true  that  the  exceptionally  intelli- 
gent, observant  and  thoughtful  persons  will  redis- 
cover the  principles  of  education,  and  do  much  work 
that  is  valuable  and  lasting.  But  at  what  cost  of 
mistakes,  and  permanent  and  serious  injuries?  So  far 
as  such  a  one  relies  upon  himself  he  is  practically  cer- 
tain to  commit  most  of  the  mistakes  which  have  been 
made  by  the  human  race  in  its  efforts  to  work  out  the 
best  system  of  education.  Why  should  this  be  done  ? 
What  should  we  say  of  the  man  who  turned  his  back 
on  all  existing  medical  knowledge,  and  the  opportunities 
for  medical  training,  so  that  he  might  rediscover  the 
truths  and  principles  of  the  healing  arts  while  practis- 
ing on  his  patients  ? 

Of  what  a  genius — the  rarest  of  exceptions — can  do, 
and  can  not  do,  without  training,  we  can  see  in  the 
case  of  Pestalozzi  himself.  Pestalozzi  says :  "I  could 
neither  write,  sum,  nor  read  perfectly.  .  .  .  [But]  I 
could  teach  writing  without  being  able  to  write  per- 
fectly myself."  M.  Buss  says  of  Pestalozzi:  ''He 
could,  unfortunately,  neither  write  nor  draw  well, 
though  he  had  brought  his  children,  in  some,  to  me, 
inconceivable  manner  well  on  in  both  these  subjects  ". 
Karl  Ritter,  the  great  geographer,  pays  this  high  tri- 
bute to  Pestalozzi's  teaching  (or,  should  we  say,  inspir- 
ation) :  "  Pestalozzi  knew  less  geography  than  a  child 
in  one  of  our  primary  schools  ;  yet  it  was  from  him  that 
I  obtained  my  chief  ideas  on  this  science,  for  it  was  in 
listening  to  him  that  I  first  conceived  the  idea  of  the 


SOME  CRITICISMS.  305 

natural  method.  It  was  he  who  opened  up  the  way  to 
me,  and  I  take  pleasure  in  attributing  entirely  to  him 
whatever  value  my  work  may  have." 

M.  Charles  Monnard  says  that  Pestalozzi,  when  he 
went  to  Burgdorf  to  teach,  **  would  have  had  no  chance 
whatever  against  even  the  most  ordinary  candidates 
[for  a  post  as  teacher].  He  had  everything  against 
him :  thick,  indistinct  speech,  bad  writing,  ignorance  of 
drawing,  scorn  of  grammatical  learning.  He  had 
studied  various  branches  of  natural  history,  but  had 
paid  no  particular  attention  either  to  classification  or 
nomenclature.  He  was  acquainted  with  the  ordinary 
numerical  calculations,  but  he  would  have  found  it 
difficult  to  work  out  a  really  long  sum  in  multiplication 
or  division,  and  had  probably  never  attempted  to  solve 
a  problem  in  geometry.  For  years  he  had  done  no 
study,  only  dreamed.  He  could  not  even  sing,  though, 
when  greatly  excited  or  elated,  he  would  hum  to  him- 
self snatches  of  poetry ;  not,  however,  with  very  much 
tune." 

What  Pestalozzi  did,  in  spite  of  all  these  drawbacks, 
he  did  because  he  was  the  genius  that  he  was,  and  not 
because  he  had  received  no  special  training  and  prepar- 
ation for  his  work.  The  roughest  diamond  is  a  diamond 
still ;  but  the  cut  and  polished  stone  is  the  best  both  for 
work  and  as  art.  When  ordinary  stones  claim  to  be 
as  diamonds,  both  danger  and  disaster  will  result. 

Other  points  of  view  in  considering  this  question  may 
be  suggested,  viz.,  the  efficiency  of  doctors  as  compared 
with  that  of  trained  nurses  in  dealing  with  the  body : 
the  efficiency  of  the  trained  nurse  as  compared  with 
that  of  the  parent,  in  carrying  out  a  doctor's  orders :  the 
efficiency  of  the  trained  artisan  as  compared  with  that 

20 


306  PESTALOZZI. 

of  the  man  in  the  street,  in  ordinary  affairs  :  the  differ- 
ence between  learning,  and  observing  how  we  learn  : 
the  difference  between  seeing  that  there  is  a  difficulty, 
and  in  recognising  in  what  the  difficulty  consists :  and 
the  difference  between  recognising  the  elements  which 
make  the  difficulty,  and  knowing  the  best  method  of 
overcoming  it. 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

WHAT  PESTALOZZI  DID  FOR  EDUCATION. 

Pestalozzi  himself  declares  what  he  sought  to  ac- 
complish, viz.f  (i)  in  the  theory  of  education :  *'  I  want 
to  psychologise  instruction  " ;  (2)  in  the  art  of  educa- 
tion: "The  public  common  school  coach,  throughout 
Europe,  must  not  simply  be  better  horsed:  what  it 
needs  most  of  all  is  that  it  should  be  turned  completely 
round,  and  brought  on  to  an  entirely  new  road  ".  And 
this  as  a  stepping-stone  to  the  general  good,  through  the 
advancement  of  the  welfare  of  the  working  classes.  As 
he  himself  says,  in  writing  of  the  effect  of  Rousseau's 
works  on  his  mind,  he  desired  an  ''  extended  sphere  of 
activity,  in  which  [he]  might  promote  the  welfare  and 
happiness  of  the  people  " ;  and  again,  in  his  letter  to 
Anna  Schulthess :  "I  shall  not  forget  the  precepts  of 
Menalk,  and  my  first  resolutions  to  devote  myself 
wholly  to  my  country ;  I  shall  never,  from  fear  of  man, 
refrain  from  speaking,  when  I  see  that  the  good  of  my 
country  calls  ujx)n  me  to  speak ;  my  whole  heart  is  my 
country's ;  I  will  risk  all  to  alleviate  the  need  and 
misery  of  my  fellow-countrymen  ". 

As  to  his  success  Raumer  says  :  "  He  compelled  the 
scholastic  world  to  revise  the  whole  of  their  task,  to 
reflect  on  the  nature  and  destiny  of  man,  as  also  on  the 
proper  way  of  leading  him  from  his  youth  towards  his 

307  20  * 


308  PESTALOZZI. 

destiny.  And  this  was  done,  not  in  the  superficial 
rationalistic  manner  of  Basedow  and  his  school,  but  so 
profoundly  that  even  a  man  like  Fichte  anticipated  very 
great  things  from  it."  Professor  Joseph  Payne  declares 
that  Pestalozzi  "stands  forth  among  educational  re- 
formers as  the  man  whose  influence  on  education  is 
wider,  deeper,  more  penetrating  than  that  of  all  the 
rest — the  prophet  and  the  sovereign  of  the  domain  in 
which  he  lived  and  laboured  ". 

Fichte  said  :  "  Pestalozzi's  essential  aim  has  been  to 
raise  the  lower  classes,  and  clear  away  all  differences 
between  them  and  the  educated  classes.  It  is  not  only 
popular  education  that  is  thus  realised,  but  national 
education.  Pestalozzi's  system  is  powerful  enough  to 
help  nations,  and  the  whole  human  race,  to  rise  from 
the  miserable  state  in  which  they  have  been  wallow- 
ing." Herbart  writes:  "The  welfare  of  the  people  is 
Pestalozzi's  aim — the  welfare  of  the  common,  crude 
population.  He  desired  to  take  care  of  those  of  whom 
fewest  do  take  care.  He  did  not  seek  the  crown  of 
merit  in  your  mansions,  but  in  your  hovels." 

Of  Pestalozzi's  work  Herbart  says :  "  The  whole  field 
of  actual  and  possible  sense-perception  is  open  to  the 
Pestalozzian  method;  its  movements  in  it  will  grow 
constantly  freer  and  larger.  Its  peculiar  merit  consists 
in  having  laid  hold  more  boldly  and  more  zealously 
than  any  former  method  of  the  duty  of  building  up  the 
child's  mind  ;  of  constructing  in  it  a  definite  experience 
in  the  light  of  clear  sense-perception ;  not  acting  as  if 
the  child  had  already  an  experience,  but  taking  care 
that  it  gets  one ;  by  not  chatting  with  him  as  though 
in  him,  as  in  the  adult,  there  was  already  a  need  for 
communicating  and  elaborating  his  acquisitions;  but. 


WHAT  PESTALOZZI  DID.  309 

in  the  very  first  place,  giving  him  that  which  later  on 
can  be,  and  is  to  be,  discussed. 

*'  The  Pestalozzian  method,  therefore,  is  by  no  means 
qualified  to  crowd  out  any  other  method,  but  to  pre- 
pare the  way  for  it.  It  takes  the  earliest  age  that  is  at 
all  capable  of  receiving  instruction.  It  treats  it  with 
the  seriousness  and  simplicity  which  are  appropriate 
where  the  very  first  raw  materials  are  to  be  procured." 

Professor  A.  Pinloche,  in  the  introduction  to  his  book 
on  Pestaiozzi,  says :  "  For  Pestalozzi  was  reserved  the 
undying  fame  of  having  not  only  restored  to  credit  the 
processes  of  the  method  of  sense-perception,  already  known 
and  applied,  but,  above  all,  of  having  realised  both  the 
social  importance  of  the  education  of  the  people  and 
the  most  suitable  means  of  determining  its  method  ". 
He  also  speaks  of  Pestalozzi's  ''original  and  powerful 
pedagogy  ". 

Mr.  Thomas  Davidson,  in  A  History  of  Education , 
says  :  ''  Pestalozzi  is  the  parent  of  the  modern  love  for 
children,  and  it  is  this  love  that  has  transformed  educa- 
tion from  a  harsh,  repressive  discipline  into  a  tender, 
thoughtful  guidance.  .  .  .  After  Pestalozzi  people  saw 
children  with  new  eyes,  invested  them  with  new  interest, 
and  felt  the  importance  of  placing  them  in  a  true  rela- 
tion to  the  world  of  nature  and  culture.  It  is  not  too 
much  to  say  that  all  modern  education  breathes  the 
spirit  of  Pestalozzi.  It  is  education  for  freedom,  not 
for  subordination." 

Dr.  Diesterweg,  a  great  German  educationist,  thus 
sums  up  the  changes  brought  about  by  Pestalozzi : 
"  Instead  of  brutal,  staring  stupidity,  close  and  tense 
attention ;  for  dull  and  blockish  eyes,  cheerful  and 
pleased  looks ;  for  crooked  back,  the  natural  erectness 


3IO 


PESTALOZZI, 


of  figure;  for  dumbness  or  silence,  joyous  pleasure  in 
speaking,  and  promptitude  that  even  takes  the  word 
out  of  another's  mouth ;  for  excessive  verbosity  in  the 
teacher,  and  consequent  stupidity  in  the  scholar,  a  dia- 
logic, or,  at  least,  a  dialogic-conversational  method ;  for 
government  by  the  stick,  a  reasonable  and  therefore  a 
serious  and  strict  discipline  ;  for  mere  external  doctrines 
and  external  discipline,  a  mental  training,  in  which 
every  doctrine  is  a  discipline  also ;  instead  of  govern- 
ment by  force,  and  a  consequent  fear  of  the  school  and 
its  pedant,  love  of  school,  and  respect  for  the  teacher  ". 

W.  C.  Woodbridge,  in  the  Annals  of  Education,  says : 
"  He  combated  with  unshrinking  boldness  and  untir- 
ing perseverance,  through  a  long  life,  the  prejudices  and 
abuses  of  the  age  in  reference  to  education,  both  by 
his  example  and  by  his  numerous  publications.  He 
attacked  with  great  vigour,  and  no  small  degree  of 
success,  that  favourite  maxim  of  bigotry  and  tyranny, 
that  obedience  and  devotion  are  the  legitimate  offspring 
of  ignorance.  ...  In  this  way  he  produced  an  impulse 
which  pervaded  Europe  and  which,  by  means  of  his 
popular  and  theoretical  works,  reached  the  cottages  of 
the  poor  and  the  palaces  of  the  great." 

To  sum  up  briefly  what  Pestalozzi  accomplished,  we 
may  say  that  he  democratised  education  :  he  psycholo- 
gised  it :  he  revolutionised  teaching  methods  :  he  showed 
the  way  to  research  and  experimental  work  in  education  : 
and  introduced  child-study.  He  taught  us  that  not  only 
must  the  teacher  know  the  child  as  a  living  and  growing 
organism,  but  he  must  acquire  the  art  of  becoming  as  a 
little  child  so  that  he  may  influence,  in  the  surest  and 
best  ways,  the  child's  development.  Like  Froebel  he 
said,  in  effect :  "  Come,  let  us  live  with  our  children  ". 


WHAT   PESTALOZZI   DID.  3II 

That  is  to  say,  the  teacher  must  adopt  the  standpoint  of 
a  child,  as  a  well-graced  actor  dons  the  character  which 
he  impersonates.  This  must  be  done  without  exag- 
geration, fuss,  or  affectation ;  and  without  losing  the 
control  which  wisdom,  affection  and  authority  should 
give.  The  teacher's  mind  should  be  so  saturated  with 
the  realisation  of  the  child's  view  of  things  that  he  un- 
consciously— in  a  great  measure — works  in  a  child-like 
(not  childish)  manner. 

Above  all,  Pestalozzi  is  the  one  who  first  tried  to 
analyse  and  systematise  the  very  elements  of  the 
science  of  education.  He  dealt  with  the  first  begin- 
nings, the  real  origins,  of  educational  development.  As 
Herbart  says:  "The  Pestalozzian  method  .  .  .  takes 
care  of  the  earliest  age  that  is  at  all  capable  of  re- 
ceiving instruction.  It  treats  it  with  the  seriousness 
and  simplicity  which  are  appropriate  where  the  very 
first  raw  materials  are  to  be  procured."  Herein  Pes- 
talozzi was  the  father  of  infants'  education,  in  the 
modern  sense  ;  and  his  great  disciple  Froebel — himself 
in  turn  a  Master — was  truly  an  expounder  and  expander 
of  Pestalozzian  principles.  Although  Pestalozzi  only 
sometimes  dealt  with  those  who  were  infants  as  to 
their  bodies,  he  (personally)  nearly  always  dealt  with 
those  who  were  infants  as  to  their  minds.  It  was  of 
these  that  he  was  always  thinking,  and  it  was  with 
them  that  he  was  so  extraordinarily  successful,  as  a 
practical  teacher. 

Perhaps  the  greatest  success  that  Pestalozzi  had  was 
his  influence  upon  two  such  men  as  Froebel  and  Her- 
bart. Froebel  says  :  *'  It  soon  became  evident  to  me 
that  Pestalozzi  was  to  be  the  watchword  of  my  life". 
Herbart  wrote  several  essays  on  Pestalozzi's  A  B  C  of 


312  PESTALOZZI. 

Sense-Perception,  and  himself  wrote  a  treatise  on  the 
same  subject.  Through  these  two  men  Pestalozzi  has, 
in  a  special  sense  and  degree,  influenced  all  modern 
education.  Indeed  it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that,  in 
relation  to  modern  education,  Pestalozzi  began  every- 
thing, though  he  finished  nothing. 

During  Pestalozzi's  lifetime  his  system  was  intro- 
duced into  most  of  the  European  countries  :  Alexander 
Boniface,  for  a  time  teacher  of  French  at  Yverdon, 
established  a  Pestalozzian  school  in  Paris.  Bloch- 
mann,  teacher  of  music  and  geography  at  Yverdon,  be- 
came chief  educational  counsellor  to  the  King  of  Saxony  ; 
Gruner,  who  visited  Yverdon,  was  head  of  a  Pesta- 
lozzian school  at  Frankfort  (where  Froebel  first  taught) ; 
Muller,  who  was  sent  to  Burgdorf  to  study  the  system, 
opened  a  Pestalozzian  school  at  Mainz ;  Plamann,  a 
visitor  at  Burgdorf,  conducted  a  Pestalozzian  school  at 
Berlin ;  Barraud,  who  learnt  under  Pestalozzi,  con- 
ducted a  school  at  Bergerac ;  Voitel  of  Soleure  founded 
a  school  at  Madrid,  and  a  training  college  for  teachers 
at  Santander ;  Strom  and  Torlitz,  two  teachers  sent  by 
the  King  of  Denmark  to  study  the  system  at  Burgdorf, 
were  put  in  charge  of  a  school  in  Copenhagen  ;  one 
teacher  went  to  St.  Petersburg.  The  King  of  Holland 
sent  two  student-teachers  to  Yverdon ;  and  the  Crown 
Prince  himself  visited  the  institution.  Many  young 
men  from  all  parts,  more  especially  from  Germany, 
went  to  the  institute  as  visitors,  to  study  the  system. 

Our  own  country  also  came  under  the  influence  of 
Pestalozzi.  Dr.  Kay  based  much  of  the  teaching  and 
organisation  of  the  Battersea  Training  College  (founded 
1840)  on  the  principles  of  Pestalozzi  and  Fellenberg. 
When  he  (Dr.  Kay)  became  secretary  of  the  Education 


WHAT   PESTALOZZI   DID.  313 

Department,  he  tried  to  spread  a  knowledge  of  Pesta- 
lozzian  method  amongst  teachers  in  London,  but  met 
with  little  success.  He  introduced  the  Tables  of  the 
Relations  of  Numbers ;  and  in  1855  a  translation  by  Mr. 
J.  Tilleard  of  Raumer's  Life  and  System  of  Pestalozzi 
was  included  in  the  books  given  "  By  grant  from  the 
Committee  of  Council  on  Education  ".  This  transla- 
tion had  already  appeared  in  the  Educational  Expositor. 
Previous  to  this  the  Irish  Commissioners  for  Education 
had  published  an  edition  of  a  manual  of  exercises  in 
arithmetic,  according  to  Pestalozzian  methods,  for  the 
use  of  their  teachers ;  and  had  introduced  the  methods 
into  the  Dublin  Model  Schools.  M.  Du  Puget,  a 
student-teacher  at  Yverdon,  was  teaching  arithmetic  on 
the  principles  of  Pestalozzi  at  a  school  at  Abbeyleix,  in 
Ireland,  in  1821. 

The  Home  and  Colonial  Infant  School  Society  (the 
original  name),  which  opened  its  schools  and  training 
college  on  ist  June,  1863,  was  founded  for  the  purpose 
of  furthering  Pestalozzi's  ideas.  In  the  "  sketch  of  the 
course  that  is  contemplated "  we  find  it  stated  that 
*'  number  and  form  will  occupy,  as  they  always  do  in  a 
Pestalozzian  school,  a  prominent  place.  .  .  .  There  will 
be  two  courses  of  drawing — first,  using  it  as  a  means 
of  developing  invention,  ingenuity  and  taste  ;  second, 
using  it  as  an  imitative  art.  In  singing  it  is  hoped  to 
carry  out  the  beautiful  system  of  Naegeli,  which  begins 
at  the  very  commencement ;  and  by  its  elementary 
exercises  cultivates  both  the  ear  and  voice  before  sing-' 
ing  is  practised."  Hermann  Kriisi,  the  son  of  Pesta- 
lozzr^s  assistant,  taught  arithmetic  and  drawing  in  the 
institution.  Charles  Reiner,  also  one  of  Pestalozzi's 
assistants,  was  at  one  time  a  member  of  the  staff. 


314  PESTALOZZI. 

Closely  connected  with  the  work  of  this  society  were 
Rev.  Charles  Mayo,  LL.D.,  and  his  sister,  Miss  Eliza- 
beth Mayo,  two  enthusiastic  educationists  to  whom 
England  probably  owes  more  for  the  benefits  of  Pesta- 
lozzi's  principles  than  to  any  other  two  persons.  They 
jointly  wrote  Observations  on  the  Establishment  and  Di- 
rection of  Infants'  Schools,  and  Pestalozzi  and  His  Prin- 
ciples, the  first  editions  of  which  were  published  in  1827 
and  1828  respectively. 

Dr.  Mayo — having  heard  through  Mr.  Synge  of 
Glanmore  Castle,  County  Wickford,  of  Pestalozzi's 
principles  of  education — went  to  Yverdon  in  July,  1819, 
and  stayed  nearly  three  years  with  Pestalozzi ;  during 
which  time  they  got  to  know  and  esteem  each  other  so 
well  that  "[he]  loved  Pestalozzi  as  a  father  and  was 
himself  loved  as  a  son  "  (Miss  Mayo,  Pestalozzi  and  His 
Principles).  How  highly  Pestalozzi  thought  of  Dr. 
Mayo  will  be  seen  from  the  testimonial  which  he  gave 
him  when  he  left  the  institute. 

"  I  the  undersigned  certify  by  these  lines,  in  testi- 
mony of  my  esteem  and  of  my  sincere  acknowledg- 
ments, that  the  Rev.  Charles  Mayo  has  lived  for  three 
years  in  my  house,  and  has  taken  charge,  during  that 
time,  of  divine  service,  and  given  lessons  in  religion, 
and  has  been  the  director  of  the  English  pupils  in  my 
establishment,  in  all  religious,  moral  and  scientific 
subjects ;  and  that  in  this  capacity  he  has  co-operated 
with  much  good-will  and  sagacity,  and  with  a  success 
full  of  blessings,  in  the  aim  of  the  efforts  of  my  life,  to 
their  fullest  extent.  Viewing  our  proceedings  without 
prejudice,  he  has  distinguished  himself  as  much  by  his 
serenity  as  by  the  active  part  he  has  taken.  By 
reason  of  this  he  has  attained  to  a  very  exact  and  pro- 


Part  of  a  Letter  written  by  Pestalozzi  to  Dr.  Mayo.      The 

SKETCH    OF    the    CaSTLE    (YvERDOn)    IS    BY    Dr.    MaYO. 

From  MS.  in  the  possession  of  Miss  Mayo. 


WHAT   PESTALOZZI   DID.  315 

found  knowledge  of  the  tendency  of  our  efforts.  Also 
he  has  grasped  the  principles  and  the  particular 
methods,  and  their  qualifications,  which  are  peculiar 
to  our  system  of  education  and  manner  of  instruction. 

"  For  some  time  I  have  found  him  to  be  a  sensible 
man,  sedate  and  benevolent,  in  the  affairs  of  my  own 
house ;  and  I  am  convinced  that,  as  his  stay  in  our 
house  has  been  for  him  and  for  me  a  great  gain,  he  will 
— by  reason  of  his  ripe  knowledge  of  the  aim  of  our 
efforts,  and  of  his  positive  conviction  of  the  important 
and  essential  advantages  of  a  part  of  these  efforts — 
exert  a  very  great  influence  in  his  own  country ;  which 
being  in  the  habit  of  welcoming  everything  that  it 
recognises  to  be  for  good,  will  extend  the  same  gener- 
osity in  favour  of  our  views.  His  noble  heart  nourishes 
this  scheme,  true  to  nature  as  it  is,  with  as  much  zeal 
as  his  mind  understands  the  means  of  carrying  it  out  in 
all  its  purity,  all  its  depth,  and  all  its  extent. 

"  May  God  be  with  you,  my  very  dear  friend !  My 
sincere  gratitude,  my  deep  affection,  is  with  you.  My 
fervent  desire  is  to  see  you  once  more  during  my  life, 
and  to  nourish  once  more,  with  you  by  my  side,  those 
hopes  the  accomplishment  of  which  is  scarcely  possible 
until  after  my  death.  May  my  good  wishes  accompany 
you  and  bring  you  happily  to  your  own  country  and  to 
the  arms  of  your  mother,  whom  you  love  with  tender 
and  filial  affection. 

*'  Pestalozzi. 

"  YvERDON,  Sth  April,  1822." 

On  his  return  to  England  in  April,  1822,  he  made 
arrangements  for  opening  a  school,  to  be  conducted  on 
Pestalozzian  principles,  for  the  children  of  the  upper 
classes.      This  was   established  at   Epsom,  and  com- 


31 6  PESTALOZZI. 

menced  in  August,  1822.  So  great  was  its  success  that 
it  had  to  be  removed  to  larger  premises,  and  was  taken 
to  Cheam  after  the  midsummer  holidays,  1826.  Here 
the  school  became  very  famous,  and  many  of  the  fore- 
most men  of  the  next  generation  received  their  early 
education  within  its  walls.  Miss  Mayo  had,  at  her 
brother's  request,  been  preparing  herself  for  several 
years  to  assist  him  in  school-work,  and  was  his  right 
hand  both  at  Epsom  and  Cheam. 

Perhaps  the  greatest  good  they  did  for  English 
education  generally  was  to  demonstrate  the  value  and 
importance  of  object  lessons  in  school  work,  and  to 
organise  them  on  Pestalozzian  principles  and  practical 
lines.  To  Miss  Mayo  belongs  the  chief  credit  of  this. 
She  wrote  several  excellent  little  manuals  for  teachers, 
viz.,  (i)  Lessons  on  Objects  (1830),  which  passed  through 
twenty-six  editions,  was  translated  into  Spanish,  and 
also  published  in  America  ;  (2)  Lessons  on  Shells  (1831); 
(3)  Model  Lessons  for  Infants'  School  Teachers  and  Nursery 
Governesses  (1838) ;  and  others,  which  proved  of  the 
greatest  service  in  spreading  sounder  views  of  educa- 
tional methods. 

In  the  preface  to  the  fourteenth  edition  (1855)  of 
Lessons  on  Objects  Miss  Mayo  remarks :  "  When  this 
work  was  first  presented  to  the  public,  nearly  thirty 
years  since,  the  idea  of  systematically  using  the  material 
world  as  one  of  the  means  of  educating  the  minds 
of  children  was  so  novel  and  so  untried  a  thing  in 
England,  that  the  title.  Lessons  on  Objects,  excited  many 
a  smile,  and  the  success  of  the  little  volume  was 
deemed  to  be,  at  best,  very  dubious.  The  plain  sound 
sense  of  the  plan,  however,  soon  recommended  it  to  our 
teachers,   and   they    discovered    that   reading,   writing 


WHAT   PESTALOZZI   DID.  317 

and  arithmetic  do  not  form  the  sole  basis  of  elementary 
education,  but  that  the  objects  and  actions  of  every-day 
life  should  have  a  very  prominent  place  in  their  pro- 
gramme." 

Miss  Mayo  was  very  closely  connected  with  the  found- 
ing and  the  working  of  the  Home  and  Colonial  Infant 
School  Society.  Mr.  John  Stuckey  Reynolds,  of  Hamp- 
stead,  desiring  to  devote  his  life  to  philanthropic  effort, 
and  hearing  of  Miss  Mayo's  knowledge  of  Pestalozzian- 
ism,  called  on  her  and  invited  her  to  supervise  the  teach- 
ing in  a  training  college  with  practising  schools,  while 
he  undertook  the  financial  arrangements.  She  agreed 
to  do  this,  and  for  over  twenty  years  was  the  guiding 
spirit  of  the  institution. 

Such  are  some  of  the  more  immediate  outcomes  of 
Pestalozzi's  work.  Of  the  full  and  final  result  of  his 
life  and  ideas  no  man  can  form  a  just  estimate;  but 
certain  it  is  that  the  world  is  the  richer,  and  mankind 
the  happier  because  of  them.  It  is  given  to  but  few 
men  to  do  world-work,  but  Pestalozzi  was  one  of  these  ; 
though  the  world  at  large  has  not  yet  fully  understood 
and  realised  what  he  has  done  for  it.  When  it  does  it 
is  not  too  much  to  say  that  his  ideas  will  never  be 
entirely  fulfilled,  so  true  and  deep  are  they.  Improved 
they  should,  and  must,  be ;  exhausted  they  can  never 
be,  in  that  they  are  true  to  the  innermost  core  of  man's 
nature. 

Of  this  great  and  good  man  we  may  say,  in  the  elo- 
quent words  of  De  Guimps,  as  true  to-day  as  when  he 
wrote  them  more  than  twenty  years  ago  :  **  He  died  at 
his  work,  this  noble  friend  of  the  poor;  and,  dying,  he 
addressed  a  supreme  appeal  to  those  who  might  do 
more  and  better  than  he  had  done,  and  continue  after 


31 8  PESTALOZZI. 

him  the  work  that  he  had  the  sorrow  of  leaving  un- 
finished. In  his  humble  modesty  he  seems  to  have 
forgotten  that  it  was  he  who  had  accompHshed  the 
hardest  and  most  important  task,  by  laying  bare  the 
vices  of  his  time,  discovering  the  principles  of  a  salutary 
reform,  and  throwing  a  way  open  in  which  we  have 
now  but  to  walk. 

"  It  is  for  the  true  and  warm  friends  of  humanity, 
those  who,  understanding  Pestalozzi,  feel  themselves 
at  one  with  him  in  spirit  and  heart,  to  answer  his  appeal, 
and  follow  him  in  the  difficult  path  made  easier  by  his 
devotion.  To-day  the  gate  stands  wide  open,  and  the 
need  is  pressing." 


SOME    BOOKS    FOR   REFERENCE. 


The  following  five  books  are  named  because  they  are  in  English,  and  were 
written  by  men  who  knew  Pestalozzi  and  his  work.  All  except  numbers 
I  and  4  are  out  of  print,  but  they  are  to  be  found  in  public  and  private 
libraries : — 

I.  Life  of  Pestalozzi,  by  Roger  de  Guimps.  2.  On  Early  Education, 
letters  to  J.  P.  Greaves.  3.  Henry  Pestalozzi,  by  Dr.  E.  Biber.  4. 
A  B  C  of  Sense-Perception,  by  Herbart.  5.  Pestalozzi,  by  Dr.  and  Miss 
Mayo. 

Some  other  books:  i.  Esprit  de  la  Methode  d' education  de  Pestalozzi, 
by  M.  A.  Jullien.  2.  Pestalozzi,  by  J.  Guillaume.  3.  Zur  Biographie 
Pestalozzis,  by  H.  Morf.  4.  Pestalozzis  Sammtliche  Werke,  edited  by 
Seyffarth.     5.  Pestalozzi  and  Swiss  Pedagogy,  edited  by  Henry  Barnard. 

SOME  SUGGESTIONS   FOR  FURTHER  READING. 

The  relation  of  Pestalozzi's  theories  on  the  development  of  knowledge, 
ideas  and  language,  and  on  the  laws  of  thought,  should  be  compared 
with  those  of  the  great  thinkers  who  preceded  him,  viz.,  Aristotle, 
Descartes,  Hobbes,  Locke,  Leibnitz  and  Kant.  Some  idea  of  these  may 
be  obtained  from  the  following  : — 

I.  Biographical  History  of  Philosophy,  by  G.  H.  Lewes.  2.  On  Hurhan 
Understanding,  by  Locke.  3.  The  Port-Royal  Logic,  translated  by  T.  S. 
Baynes.  4.  Laws  of  Thoiight,  by  Thomson.  5.  Elementary  Lessons  in 
Logic,  by  Jevons. 

The  relation  of  Pestalozzi's  ideas  on  these  subjects  to  those  of  to-day 
may  be  seen  by  the  study  of  the  Manual  of  Psychology,  by  G.  F.  Stout ; 
The  Principles  of  Psychology,  by  William  James;  The  Logical  Bases  of 
Education,  by  J.  Welton;  The  Child's  Mind,  by  W.  E.  Urwick. 


319 


INDEX. 


Anschauung:  nature  of,  179-81. 
Arithmetic :  see  number. 
Atmosphere :  the  school,  256-61. 

Biber,  Dr. :  on  the  Neuhof  failure, 
50-51 ;  on  the  Yverdon  Institute, 
93-96;  on  P.'s  assistants,  103-4. 

Burgdorf :  P.'s  work  at,  80-88. 

Character  of  P.,  121-41. 
Child-study:    P.'s    work   in,    33-38, 

43-44,  75-76,  144-48. 
Christopher  and  Eliza,  59. 
Clindy  Poor  School,  iio-ii. 
Curriculum  :  at  Yverdon,  100-2. 

Der  Erinnerer,  27,  149. 

"  Discover  everything  "  :  criticism 
of,  300-2. 

Drawing:  beginnings  of,  215  ;  teach- 
ing of,  215-18,  286-87. 


Education : 
168-78. 


nature    and    aims    of, 


Fellenberg  de,  Emmanuel,  16-18,  59. 
Form:  in  education,  185-86,  189-go; 

teaching  of,  215-22 ;  criticism  of 

P.'s  ideas  on,  297-300. 
Froebel :  on  P.,  131-32,  311. 

Genetic  education,  173-78,  186,  189, 

193- 

Genius :  the  nature  and  work  of, 
1-2,   148,  304-5. 

Geography :  teaching  of,  230-32. 

Girard  Pere,  15-16. 

Guimps  de :  on  the  Yverdon  In- 
stitute, 97-99. 


Gymnastics : 
161-64. 


nature    and    use    of 


Helvetic    Society,    the,    13-14,    27, 

143- 
Herbart:  on  P.,  177-78,  308-9,  311. 
History  :  teaching  of,  232-33. 
How   Gertrude  Teaches  :    ahn  and 

nature  of,  83. 


of,     183-84, 
process  of. 


Ideas  :     development 

186-88,   191. 
Intellectual  education 

178-90. 
Intuition,  or  anschauung  :  nature  of, 

179-81 ;  basis  of  all  learning,  185, 

192,  198 ;   the  basis  of  language, 

loo-i,  199-203,  205-6. 
Investigation    into    the    Course    of 

Nature :  aim  and  scope  of,  63-67* 

Knowledge :  development  of,  182-90. 

Language,  criticism  of  P.'s  idea 
of,  297-300;  its  function  in  edu- 
cation, 185-86,  189-90;  teaching 
of,  197-214,  281-88, 

Latin :  teaching  of,  246-49. 

Leonard  and  Gertrude:  origin  and 
substance  of,  53-58 ;  continued, 
59,  63,  117. 

Letter :  of  P. :  to  Swiss  Minister  of 
Justice,  69;  of  Emperor  to  P., 
97-98. 

Manual  work,  242-46. 

Mayo,  Miss,  316-17, 

Mayo,  Rev.  Dr.,  314-16;  on  the 
Yverdon  Institute,  104-5 ;  on  P.'s 
plan  of  teaching  Latin,  247-48. 


321 


21 


322 


INDEX. 


Morals :  origin,  nature  and  training 

in,  159-62;  teaching  of,  249-55. 
Moral  and   religious   development : 

education    a    means    of,    155-62, 

169-70. 
Mother,  the:  in  education,  55,  153, 

156-58,   181,   205-6,   208,   211-13, 

260-61,  264-65. 
Munchen  Buchsee  :  P.  at,  8g. 
Music:   as  moral  training,   161-62; 

teaching  of,  237-42. 
Mutual  instruction,  269-70  ;  criticism 

of,  294-96. 

Natural  Schoolmaster,  The,  252-54. 

Nature,  method  of:  to  be  followed 
in  education,  36,  60,  171-78,  179, 
198,  211. 

Neuhof  industrial  school,  39-48. 

Number  :  in  education,  185  -  86, 
189-90;  teaching  of,  34-35,  86,  97, 
222-29,  258,  287  ;  criticism  of  P.'s 
method,  etc.,  296-97,  297-300. 

Observation :  first-hand  best,  147-48 ; 
training  of,  184-89,  192,  205-6 ; 
in  geography,  230-32 ;  in  science, 
233-35- 

Pestalozzi :  as  a  Deputy,  87-88  ;  as 
a  practical  teacher,  283  ;  at  school, 
21-22;  at  college,  27-31;  begins 
to  be  famous,  69-70;  begins  as 
vv^riter,  50-55 ;  failure  at  Neuhof, 
44-49  ;  leaves  farming,  32-33  ;  last 
days  and  work,  113-19 ;  studies 
his  child,  33-38;  what  he  did  for 
education,  307-13. 

Physical  development :  education  as 
means  of,  162-66;  training,  95, 
242-46. 

Popular  Swiss  News  :  aim  and 
nature  of,   68. 


Punishment  :     as     natural     conse- 
quence,   38,     157,    275;     school, 

274-82. 

Reading :  is  secondary  in  education, 

198 ;  teaching  of,  207-14,  257. 
Reports  on   P.'s  work:    at   Stanz, 

76-77;    at   Burgdorf,    84-87;     at 

Yverdon,   106-7. 
Rousseau :  his  Contrat  Social,  11-13  ; 

influence  on  P.,  28. 

School-books :    written  by  and   for 

P.,  83-84,  lOI. 
Schools :  kind  of  in  P.'s  time,  23-26. 
Science  :  teaching  of,  233-37. 
Senses :  training  of,  164-65. 
Simultaneous  oral  work,  266-68,  285  ; 

criticism  of,  292-94. 
Social   development :    education    a 

means  of,  149-55,  168-69. 
Spelling  :  teaching  of,  203-8,  284. 
Staff  conferences,  270-73. 
Stanz  orphan   school  :    history  of, 

71-79. 
Summaries  of  P.'s  theory,  194-96. 
Swan's  Song :  purpose  of,  113-14. 
Swiss  News ;  aim  and  contents  of, 

60-63. 
Switzerland :    political    and    social 

changes  in,  7-15,  68,  87-88. 

Teacher,  the :  as  educator,  190-96 ; 

qualifications  of,  i6i-66 ;  criticism 

of  P.'s  idea  of,  302-6. 
Time-table,  274. 

Wanderer's  evening  prayer  (hymn), 

116. 
Writing :  is  secondary  in  education, 

198  ;  teaching  of,  146, 257,  219-21 ; 

and  composition,  221-22. 

Yverdon  :  P.'s  work  at,  89-112. 


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